Trees, Grass and Plants

Council does not usually mow private land, or footpaths or road reserves next to private property. Residents are expected to look after these areas.

In some cases, we can investigate reports of overgrown land and / or take enforcement action to make sure properties are maintained to a reasonable standard that does not pose a health and safety risk to adjoining properties.

What is considered overgrown land?

Land is not automatically considered overgrown just because it’s untidy.

For Council to investigate a property as overgrown, these conditions must be met:

1. The property must be in a residential zone (R1, R2, R3, R4, R5).
2. More than 50% of the land must be overgrown to a height of at least 0.5 metres.
3. The overgrown vegetation must be directly impacting you, and either:
   1. within 10 metres of your dwelling, or
   2. within 5 metres of your property boundary.
4. Detailed information / evidence must be provided to show how the overgrown land impacts you, or that vermin is living in the vegetation.

Note that we will not respond to reports where:

• The above conditions are not met – even if the land looks untidy or contains noxious weeds.
• The vegetation is in a rural or industrial area.
• The vegetation is close to a green corridor, environmentally sensitive land, bushland or an urban water course.
• The overgrowth is native vegetation protected under the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 or the Native Vegetation Act 2003.
• The request relates to potential fire risk. These types of reports can be sent to NSW Rural Fire Service.

Reporting overgrown land

Before you report overgrown land to Council, please read the above information carefully.

We encourage you to try and solve the problem by talking to the owner or manager of the overgrown property first, if you can. They may not be aware their land is causing a problem and may be happy to fix the issue.

To report overgrown land, use the button below or call us on (02) 4227 7111.

What happens after I report overgrown land?

If the report meets the conditions above, we’ll investigate.

We may take action, including serving the property owner with a formal notice to manage and maintain the vegetation on their land under the Local Government Act.

We look after most trees and plants on public land. You can report tree and plant issues to us like:

• Dead, diseased or decaying trees
• Root damage
• Damaged or hanging branches
• Roots from a tree on public land blocking a sewer
• Storm damage
• Bee or wasp hives or swarms in a tree
• Birds causing damage to a tree.

Call (02) 4227 7111 or use the button below.

Damaging trees and plants on public land is a serious criminal offence.

Tree vandalism can include poisoning, pruning, ringbarking, burning, removing or destroying plants.

If you’ve seen anyone vandalising a tree or plant, you can report it to us using the button below, or contact the Police on 131 444.

Check if tree or vegetation work has been approved

If you're unsure whether someone has permission for tree or vegetation work, you can use the button below to check. We'll confirm if we've issued a tree permit or development consent for tree pruning, removal or vegetation clearing.

You will need to tell us the property address and details of what trees are being pruned or removed. Make sure you include information about the dates and times that the work on the tree or trees happened.

Please note that we do not have records of clearing done under NSW 10/50 Vegetation Clearing Scheme.

Report unauthorised tree or vegetation work

Use the button below to tell us about tree pruning, tree removal, or vegetation clearing on private land which you think may not have been approved.

Endeavour Energy is our local electricity company. They keep trees clear of powerlines and can prune trees near powerlines without Council’s approval.

To report a problem about trees near powerlines, visit Endeavour Energy’s website or call them on 131 003.

If you notice a bee swarm in a tree that’s on public land, call us on (02) 4227 7111 or use the button below. We’ll look into it and if needed arrange experts to remove it.

If a bee swarm is on private land, the owner will need to make arrangements to deal with it. Don’t try to remove a bee swarm yourself! Visit the Illawarra Beekeepers websiteto find someone who can safely remove it for you.