Siskiyou County, CA Tree Protection: Tree Removal Permits (2026)

Siskiyou County does not require a county tree-removal permit to cut trees on private residential land in the unincorporated area. The County Code has no heritage-tree, significant-tree, native-tree, or oak-woodland permit chapter, so removing a tree from your own parcel generally needs no county approval. The only tree-related zoning category is the Timberland Production Zone (Title 10, Chapter 6, Article 51), a state-driven tax and land-use classification for commercial timberland whose stated purpose includes protecting immature trees so they can eventually be harvested and restricting timberland to timber production and compatible uses; it limits parcel division (no division below 40 acres under Section 10-6.5106) but is not a homeowner tree-cutting permit. Where trees are commercial timber being cut for sale, the permitting authority is the State of California, not the county: under the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act, a Timber Harvesting Plan (THP) or a qualifying exemption must be approved by CAL FIRE before commercial harvest. The county may still require tree clearing for fire safety under the defensible-space and firebreak rules of Title 3, Chapter 3, and tree removal connected to grading or building may be reviewed under the county's erosion-control and building standards. Property owners with questions about whether their land is in a Timberland Production Zone or whether a THP is needed should consult the county Planning Division and CAL FIRE.