British Columbia
Vancouver By-law 9958 schedules for building near trees, BC
Protection of Trees By-law No. 9958 of the City of Vancouver, BC, sets its rules for building near trees in printed schedules. Schedule B says how close a tree can stand to a proposed building and still count toward the site's tree total. Schedule C says how many trees a site of a given area must have. The $1,000 cash-in-lieu option in s.6.2 turns on that Schedule C number.
Schedule A sets the protection barrier
Schedule A prints the protection barrier distance for each listed trunk diameter. Read the Vancouver barrier table.
Barriers also decide when work can start. Under Section 7.9, no demolition, excavation or construction permit is available until the Chief Building Official has inspected and approved each protection barrier on the site or on adjacent property, and the City Engineer has done the same for each barrier on a street.
Street-side barriers carry their own clearances. For a boulevard or lane tree, s.7.8 requires each barrier to stand 0.6 m or more from the curb so car doors can open, and 0.3 m or more from the edge of a sidewalk inside a grass boulevard. Nobody may prune, move or disturb that tree without the Park Board's prior written permission.
Schedule B decides which trees count near a new building
Section 5.2 leaves a tree out of the Schedule C count when it stands closer to a proposed principal building than the Part 1 distance, or closer to a proposed accessory building than the Part 2 distance. Both cases apply to a building proposed under a development permit or a building permit.
Measure the distance at 1.4 m above grade, as the shortest line from a point on the main trunk to a point on the exterior wall of the proposed or existing building (s.5.4). The Director of Planning can relax the distance (s.5.5).
A tree must stand at least the printed distance from the wall to count.
Schedule B Part 1: distance from a principal building
| Tree diameter | Minimum distance to the wall |
|---|---|
| 20 cm to 30 cm | 2.0 m |
| 31 cm to 32 cm | 2.1 m |
| 33 cm | 2.2 m |
| 34 cm to 35 cm | 2.3 m |
| 36 cm | 2.4 m |
| 37 cm to 38 cm | 2.5 m |
| 39 cm | 2.6 m |
| 40 cm to 44 cm | 2.7 m |
| 45 cm to 49 cm | 3.0 m |
| 50 cm to 54 cm | 3.3 m |
| 55 cm to 59 cm | 3.7 m |
| 60 cm and above | 4.0 m |
Schedule B Part 2: distance from an accessory building
| Tree diameter | Minimum distance to the wall |
|---|---|
| 20 cm to 24 cm | 1.0 m |
| 25 cm to 29 cm | 1.3 m |
| 30 cm to 34 cm | 1.5 m |
| 35 cm to 39 cm | 1.8 m |
| 40 cm to 44 cm | 2.0 m |
| 45 cm to 49 cm | 2.3 m |
| 50 cm to 54 cm | 2.5 m |
| 55 cm to 59 cm | 2.8 m |
| 60 cm to 64 cm | 3.0 m |
| 65 cm to 69 cm | 3.3 m |
| 70 cm and above | 3.5 m |
The by-law does not say which Part of Schedule B governs a laneway house. Confirm with the City of Vancouver before a design depends on either table.
Schedule C sets the number of trees a site must have
Section 5.1 counts each retention tree, relocation tree and replacement tree toward the Schedule C number. A tree that Section 5.2 excludes, such as one too close to a proposed building, does not count.
The count does not climb evenly. It goes up a single tree per row through 1850 m², then the 1851 m² row asks for 12 trees, and the rows above it climb in larger steps. Check the row for the full site area, not an estimate.
| Site area | Trees required |
|---|---|
| 0 m² to 365 m² | 2 |
| 365 m² to 450 m² | 3 |
| 451 m² to 565 m² | 4 |
| 566 m² to 750 m² | 5 |
| 751 m² to 1000 m² | 6 |
| 1001 m² to 1250 m² | 7 |
| 1251 m² to 1600 m² | 8 |
| 1601 m² to 1850 m² | 9 |
| 1851 m² to 2200 m² | 12 |
| 2201 m² to 2550 m² | 16 |
| 2551 m² to 2900 m² | 20 |
| 2901 m² to 3250 m² | 25 |
| over 3250 m² | 30 plus one additional tree for each 50 meters squared in site area above 3250 meters squared |
The printed table overlaps at its first boundary. Its first two rows both include 365 m², so a site of exactly 365 m² sits in both rows. Confirm with the City of Vancouver which count it applies to a site of that size.
Cash-in-lieu depends on the Schedule C count
"Despite section 6.1 and section 4.10, if a site, immediately after removal of a tree pursuant to a permit or in contravention of this By-law, includes at least the number of trees set out in Schedule C, the owner of the site does not need to plant a replacement tree and provide security for such trees if the owner elects to pay the City cash-in-lieu of those trees at the rate of $1,000.00 for each tree that would otherwise have to be planted".
The $1,000 per tree election under s.6.2 is open only when the site, right after the removal, still holds at least the Schedule C number of trees. A site that falls short of that number cannot take the cash option in place of replacement planting.
Schedule D lists the replacement species. For each tree removed, the owner plants one replacement tree from Part 1 of Schedule D or two from Part 2 (s.6.3). Our Vancouver permit guide covers replacement stock sizes and security. Read the Vancouver permit guide.
Other Vancouver permit rules
The rest of Vancouver's permit rules sit in the Metro Vancouver tree bylaw comparison. Our construction and development arborist reports page covers projects near retained trees, and the contact page takes the site details.
We confirm availability for your address before we quote. We do not offer emergency service.
Get a quote
Tell us about your property. An ISA Certified Arborist will reply with a firm quote.
- Free consultation, response within 24 hours.
- We confirm availability for your address before we quote.
- We do not sell tree removal.
ISA Certified Arborist · ISA Member