Years of work by citizens and city staff to create an ordinance that truly protected trees were seemingly felled by the ax of politics.
On June 16, 2025, the Atlanta City Council voted forward a new tree ordinance, with all tree protections removed.. (Courtesy of Atlanta Dogwood Festival 2023)
By Kathryn Kolb, Howard Katzman, and Chet Tisdale
16 hours ago
On June 16, Atlanta City Council members voted to approve a new tree protection ordinance, which, despite its title, still fails to protect trees on developing properties in our city.
Atlanta suffers excessive tree loss because builders cut more trees than they need to. Since 2001, paying fees to cut trees has not worked to deter excessive tree cutting. Fees to cut trees have simply become a cost of doing business, and clear-cutting has increased.
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ExploreRetrieving data. Wait a few seconds and try to cut or copy again.
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Three things to know about this ‘empty’ ordinance
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ExploreFor Atlanta to be great, city must invest in infrastructure beyond The BeltlineA “tree density” requirement sounds nice, but it doesn’t actually require saving trees because the requirement can be met 100% by planting new trees. Illegal tree cutting may be reduced on homeowner properties, but that won’t save trees in developments because those trees can still be cut legally. Recompense fees were raised, but then fee “caps” were added so that no matter how many trees are cut, the fee won’t be over a fixed amount. The more trees cut, the cheaper it costs per tree. Fee caps only apply if some trees are retained. However, retaining trees is optional. The percentage is minimal, and since “priority trees” were eliminated, small, lower-value trees can be saved at property margins while mature oaks and hardwoods can be cleared at the cheaper rate. Further, trees in stream buffers count as “preserved” even though these trees can never be cut anyway because of local regulations, so on many properties, clear-cutting per usual — without saving one tree more than they do today — will actually allow developers to pay even less than they do today. Even the full fee rate still gives the city barely 50% of fair market value for trees lost.
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Credit: Hand
Kathryn Kolb is one of the leaders of the Citizens Group for a Better Atlanta Tree Ordinance. (Courtesy)
Saving trees and building great developments can go hand-in-hand
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Credit: Hand
Chet Tisdale is one of the leaders of the Citizens Group for a Better Atlanta Tree Ordinance. (Courtesy)
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Kathryn Kolb, Howard Katzman, and Chet Tisdale