Richland County requires no tree-removal permit for a homeowner on an exempt single-family lot. On development sites, the Land Development Code requires an approved tree protection and replacement plan before any protected trees are removed, with strict replacement ratios.
Under LDC Sec. 26-176, single-family and two-family dwellings are exempt from the tree standards, so no county permit is needed to remove yard trees. For regulated development, a tree protection plan must be submitted before any grading or clearing, and "a tree replacement plan shall be submitted and approved before any protected trees are removed." Protected trees are grand trees plus fair-or-better trees 10 inches or larger in a protected zone. Approved grand-tree removals are replaced 6:1; other protected trees 3:1. Commercial timber, tree farms and agricultural operations are exempt.
Unauthorized removal of protected trees triggers a mitigation restoration plan; the zoning administrator may order replacement up to 4:1 with 4-inch caliper trees, and no certificate of occupancy issues until conditions are met.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
richland-county-sc
Richland County has no ordinance banning residential backyard composting. Reasonable home compost piles are allowed, but a pile that becomes a nuisance, harb...
richland-county-sc
Richland County has no ordinance specifically permitting or prohibiting artificial turf on residential lots. Single-family yards are exempt from the county's...
richland-county-sc
Richland County does not require homeowners to plant native species, but its Land Development Code favors them: on development sites, trees and plants in par...
richland-county-sc
Rainwater harvesting is legal in South Carolina and Richland County has no ordinance banning or permitting residential rain barrels or cisterns. The county a...
richland-county-sc
Richland County itself imposes no permanent lawn-watering ordinance. Outdoor water use is governed by your water utility and by South Carolina's Drought Resp...
richland-county-sc
Richland County Code Sec. 18-4 treats overgrown grass, weeds, dead brush and noxious plants in developed areas as "unsafe and noxious vegetation." The sherif...
See how Richland County's tree removal permits rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.