Chapel Hill's tree-replacement obligation is built into LUMO Section 5.7, which sets minimum canopy-coverage standards that vary from 20% to 40% based on land use. For commercial development, a minimum of 15% of the overall site must be preserved as a tree save area. For single-family residential, a tree save area of 10% must be preserved whenever existing canopy is at least 10% of the site. On-site retention is the highest priority; mitigation payments into the Town tree-mitigation fund may substitute when providing canopy on-site is not practicable.
LUMO Section 5.7 (Tree Protection) imposes the Town's replacement framework. The ordinance establishes minimum canopy-coverage standards by land-use category, ranging from 20% to 40%. For commercial development, a minimum of fifteen (15) percent of the overall site must be preserved as a tree save area. For single-family residential development, a tree save area of ten (10) percent must be preserved whenever the existing canopy on the site is at least 10%. The highest priority for all projects is the maintenance and replacement of canopy on-site; mitigation payments shall be used only when providing canopy on-site is not practicable. Mitigation contributions flow into a Town tree-mitigation fund used to install and maintain trees on public property within Chapel Hill. Required replacement species must come from the Town's approved landscape plant list and meet LUMO size and caliper standards at installation; native NC species in the protected genera receive preferred treatment, and the 11 invasive exotic species listed in Section 5.7.6 cannot be used to satisfy canopy or replacement requirements. Trees within the Resource Conservation District (LUMO Article 3 § 3.6) and trees in OWASA watershed buffers face additional retention rules. State law (NCGS 160D-921) limits the Town's broader tree authority on present-use-value forestland.
Failure to provide required canopy retention, replacement, or mitigation under LUMO Section 5.7 is a LUMO violation enforced by Planning & Building Development Services. Civil penalties run up to $500 per violation per day, with each day a separate offense and accumulated restoration orders. Continued non-compliance can trigger withholding of certificates of compliance and stop-work orders. NCGS 160D-921(c) lets Chapel Hill deny building permits or refuse plats for up to three years following a non-compliant timber harvest.
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