--- title: Ashcroft tree removal rules and permits question: "Do I need permission to cut down a tree on my property?" place: Ashcroft, British Columbia, Canada place_path: ca/bc/ashcroft category: Building, renovating and your property owner: municipal owner_body: Village of Ashcroft sources_read: 2026-11-08 review: machine_checked canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/ashcroft/tree-removal/" json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/ashcroft/tree-removal.json" --- # Ashcroft tree removal rules and permits **Question:** Do I need permission to cut down a tree on my property? **Short answer:** Ashcroft has no tree-cutting permit bylaw that we found. In Development Permit Area 1 (streamside) and Area 2 (hazardous slopes and soils), a development permit is needed for subdivision, building work or "alteration of land". The plan does not say whether cutting a tree counts, so ask the Village first. **Who handles it:** Municipal (Village of Ashcroft, https://ashcroftbc.ca) **Cost:** No tree-cutting permit fee found. A development permit, where one is required, is $500. **How long:** Not stated. **Where:** - In person: Village Office, 601 Bancroft Street, Ashcroft, BC V0K 1A0 (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) - Phone: Village Office, 250-453-9161 - Email: Village Office, admin@ashcroftbc.ca ## Key facts - **When a permit is needed:** No tree-cutting permit bylaw found. In Development Permit Area 1 (streamside, riparian areas) and Area 2 (hazardous slopes and soils), a development permit is required for subdivision, construction or alteration of a building or structure, or 'alteration of land'. The OCP does not say whether cutting a tree counts as alteration of land. - Source: [Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 889, 2026, s. 17.1.4, 17.2.4](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Bylaw-No.-889-2026-Official-Community-Plan-OCP.pdf) - Official wording: "Development Permit Area No. 1 consists of all the riparian assessment areas within the Village of Ashcroft" … "Alteration of land." … "Development Permit Area No. 2 is the area shown as Hazardous Slopes and Soils on Schedule D." - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08 - **Exemptions:** DPA 1 does not apply to reconstruction or repair of a permanent structure on its existing foundation, or to agricultural, mining or forestry development. DPA 2 does not apply to, among others, new buildings or structures under 10 m² and the erection of a sign or fence. - Source: [Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 889, 2026, s. 17.1.5, 17.2.5](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Bylaw-No.-889-2026-Official-Community-Plan-OCP.pdf) - Official wording: "Development Permit Area No. 1 does not apply to agricultural, mining, or forestry related development." … "The construction of new buildings or structures less than 10 square metres in area;" … "The erection of a sign or fence;" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08 - **Fee:** Development permit fee $500 (Fees and Charges Bylaw, Schedule L), where a development permit is required. No tree-cutting permit fee found. - Source: [Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 887, 2026, Schedule L](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Bylaw-No.-887-2026-Village-of-Ashcroft-Fees-and-Charges.pdf) - Official wording: "Zoning Bylaw Amendment $1000.00 Development Permit $500.00 If OCP and Zoning Amendments are in tandem, combined fee $1800.00" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08 - **Replacement trees:** None set. The bylaws that were read set no replanting requirement and no fine for cutting a tree without a permit. - **City trees:** Not confirmed. Not found in the official sources that were read. - **Fine:** None set. The bylaws that were read set no replanting requirement and no fine for cutting a tree without a permit. - **Bylaw:** No tree bylaw found. Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 889, 2026, Development Permit Areas (Part 17, s. 17.1 and 17.2). - Source: [Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 889, 2026, s. 17](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Bylaw-No.-889-2026-Official-Community-Plan-OCP.pdf) - Official wording: "This Plan contains four Development Permit Areas:" - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08 ## How it works The Village has no tree-cutting permit bylaw that we found in the Good Neighbour Bylaw, the Zoning Bylaw or the [Official Community Plan](). The Plan's Development Permit Areas may apply. In Area 1 (streamside, riparian areas) and Area 2 (hazardous slopes and soils), a development permit is required for subdivision, construction or alteration of a building or structure, or "alteration of land". The Plan does not say whether cutting a tree counts as alteration of land. Area 1 does not apply to repair of a permanent structure on its existing foundation, or to agricultural, mining or forestry development. Area 2 does not apply to, among others, new buildings under 10 m² and the erection of a sign or fence. ## Steps 1. Ask the Village office whether your property is in a Development Permit Area and whether cutting a tree there needs a permit. 2. If a development permit is required, the fee is $500 (Fees and Charges Bylaw, Schedule L). ## Good to know - Under the [Good Neighbour Bylaw]() (s. 3.7), owners must keep trees and hedges tidy, trimmed back from sidewalks and roads, and free of dead or dry material. Planting a cedar hedge is banned, and existing cedar hedges must be replaced with FireSmart vegetation when a property is redeveloped. - The bylaws read set no replanting requirement and no fine for cutting without a permit. - Owners must keep adjacent boulevards tidy, with grass and weeds under 15 cm, and may not place unauthorized structures, materials or landscaping on them (s. 3.11). No rule on cutting Village-owned trees was found. ## Official forms and pages - [Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 889, 2026 (PDF)](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Bylaw-No.-889-2026-Official-Community-Plan-OCP.pdf) ## Related questions - [Ashcroft zoning: find your zone and what it allows](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/ashcroft/zoning-lookup.md) - [Ashcroft building permits: when you need one and how to apply](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/ashcroft/building-permit.md) ## The same question elsewhere - [Tree removal permits in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tree-removal.md) - [Lillooet](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/lillooet/tree-removal.md) - [Lytton](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/lytton/tree-removal.md) - [Kamloops](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kamloops/tree-removal.md) - [Merritt](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/merritt/tree-removal.md) - [Barriere](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/barriere/tree-removal.md) - [100 Mile House](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/100-mile-house/tree-removal.md) ## Sources - [Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 889, 2026 (PDF)](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Bylaw-No.-889-2026-Official-Community-Plan-OCP.pdf) (read 2026-11-08) - [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 879, 2025 (PDF)](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Bylaw-No.-879-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-2025.pdf) (read 2026-11-08) - [Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 887, 2026 (PDF)](https://ashcroftbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Bylaw-No.-887-2026-Village-of-Ashcroft-Fees-and-Charges.pdf) (read 2026-11-08) _Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 4 of 7 facts was matched to the official text; 2 are recorded as not set; 1 could not be confirmed. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with Village of Ashcroft. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/ashcroft/tree-removal/_