Urban forest management

AN ACT Relating to urban forest management ordinances; amending 1
RCW 76.15.010 and 76.15.110; and creating new sections.2
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:3
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that there is 4
currently a shortage of housing, particularly affordable housing, 5
within the state. The legislature finds one of the most efficient and 6
sustainable ways to address this shortage is through the development 7
of housing options within existing urban growth areas. The 8
legislature also finds that tree canopy and green space are necessary 9
for the health and wellness of urban growth area residents, and that 10
the retention of the most significant and vital trees in a community 11
is a valuable goal. To improve the quality of tree canopy and green 12
space in the state, the legislature previously adopted chapter 76.15 13
RCW to encourage planning for, planting, maintaining, and managing 14
trees in the state's cities, counties, and tribal lands.15
Local government policies, programs, activities, and management 16
plans regarding urban and community forestry may, however, limit or 17
prevent development opportunities that would provide needed 18
additional housing. The legislature believes it is important that 19
actions taken by local governments to promote urban and community 20
forestry and to address the negative impacts of a reduction in tree 21
H-0349.1
HOUSE BILL 1153
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Duerr, Ramel, Parshley, Berg, Ormsby, and Hill
Prefiled 01/03/25. Read first time 01/13/25. Referred to Committee
on Agriculture & Natural Resources.
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canopy do not adversely impact the ability of local governments to 1
provide housing that is needed to accommodate projected population 2
growth. Therefore, it is the intent of the legislature to provide 3
guidance to local governments wishing to create tree bank programs as 4
an additional tool for promoting urban and community forestry while 5
also allowing for the development of needed housing. Tree banks can 6
allow the removal of trees in one area being developed to be offset 7
by the addition of trees to one or more areas in which the need for 8
trees is more acute. Using tree banks can facilitate adding trees in 9
areas that have historically suffered from environmental inequality 10
and health disparities, areas subject to the urban heat island 11
effect, and areas in which the trees will most benefit salmon and 12
orca recovery efforts. 13
At the same time, the legislature recognizes that the retention 14
of critical trees is of even more benefit than is the use of tree 15
banks. The legislature believes that local regulations can ensure 16
that the most vital trees within a community are protected, even 17
while providing developers with the ability to produce needed housing 18
options. Through the use of incentives for preserving the trees that 19
are most critical to maintaining a healthy urban tree canopy, local 20
governments can encourage developers to maintain trees without 21
disincentivizing or preventing the construction of housing. The 22
legislature intends to encourage and assist local governments in the 23
use of such regulations. 24
It is the intent of the legislature that the department of 25
natural resources produce model regulations incorporating tree banks 26
and development incentives for the protection of vital trees for use 27
by local governments. It is also the intent of the legislature that 28
these model regulations be voluntary and that local governments 29
retain discretion in choosing whether to adopt the regulations.30
Sec. 2. RCW 76.15.010 and 2021 c 209 s 4 are each amended to 31
read as follows: 32
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter 33
unless the context clearly requires otherwise. 34
(1) "Department" means the department of natural resources.35
(2) "Evergreen community" means a city, town, or county 36
designated as such under RCW 76.15.090. 37
(3) "Highly impacted community" has the same meaning as defined 38
in RCW 19.405.020 or an equivalent cumulative impacts analysis that 39
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identifies the environmental health conditions of communities as a 1
factor of both environmental health hazards and vulnerable 2
populations as defined in RCW 19.405.020. 3
(4) "Management plan" means an urban forest management plan 4
developed pursuant to this chapter. 5
(5) "Tree bank" means an area or areas designated by a community 6
wherein trees can be planted to compensate for the removal of trees 7
elsewhere, and includes programs providing for the payment of a fee 8
in lieu of physically planting the trees.9
(6) "Tree canopy" means the layer of leaves, branches, and stems 10
of trees that cover the ground when viewed from above and that can be 11
measured as a percentage of a land area shaded by trees.12
(((6))) (7) "Tribes" means any federally recognized Indian tribes 13
whose traditional lands and territories include parts of the state.14
(((7))) (8) "Urban and community forest" or "urban forest" is 15
that land in and around human settlements ranging from small 16
communities to metropolitan areas, occupied or potentially occupied 17
by trees and associated vegetation. Urban and community forestland 18
may be planted or unplanted, used or unused, and includes public and 19
private lands, lands along transportation and utility corridors, and 20
forested watershed lands within populated areas. Nothing in this 21
chapter may be construed to apply to lands subject to or designated 22
under chapter 76.09, 79.70, 79.71, 84.33, or 84.34 RCW.23
(((8))) (9) "Urban and community forest assessment" or "urban 24
forest assessment" means an analysis of the urban and community 25
forest inventory to: Establish the scope and scale of forest-related 26
benefits and services; determine the economic valuation of such 27
benefits, highlight trends, and issues of concern; identify high 28
priority areas to be addressed; outline strategies for addressing the 29
critical issues and urban landscapes; and identify opportunities for 30
retaining trees, expanding forest canopy, and planting additional 31
trees to sustain Washington's urban and community forests.32
(((9))) (10) "Urban and community forest inventory" or "urban 33
forest inventory" means a management tool designed to gauge the 34
condition, management status, health, and diversity of an urban and 35
community forest. An inventory may evaluate individual trees or 36
groups of trees or canopy cover within urban and community forests, 37
and will be periodically updated by the department.38
(((10))) (11) "Urban and community forestry" or "urban forestry" 39
means the planning, establishment, protection, care, and management 40
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of trees and associated plants individually, in small groups, or 1
under more naturally forested conditions within cities, counties, and 2
tribal lands. 3
(((11))) (12) "Urban and community forestry ordinance" or "urban 4
forestry ordinance" is an ordinance developed by a city, county, or 5
tribe that promotes urban forestry management and care of trees.6
(((12))) (13) "Vulnerable populations" has the same meaning as 7
defined in RCW 19.405.020. 8
Sec. 3. RCW 76.15.110 and 2021 c 209 s 10 are each amended to 9
read as follows: 10
(1) The department must provide technical assistance and capacity 11
building resources and opportunities to cities, counties, federally 12
recognized tribes, and other public and private entities in the 13
development and coordination of policies, programs, and activities 14
for the promotion of urban and community forestry.15
(2) The department may use existing urban and community forestry 16
inventory tools or develop additional tools to assist cities, 17
counties, federally recognized tribes, and other public and private 18
entities to collect urban and community forest tree data that informs 19
urban and community forestry management, planning, and policy 20
development. 21
(3) The department shall strive to enable Washington cities' 22
urban forest managers to access carbon markets by working to ensure 23
tools developed under this section are compatible with existing and 24
developing urban forest carbon market reporting protocols.25
(4) The department may use existing tools to assist communities 26
to develop urban forestry management plans. Management plans may 27
include, but not be limited to, the following elements:28
(a) Inventory and assessment of the jurisdiction's urban and 29
community forests utilized as a dynamic management tool to set goals, 30
implement programs, and monitor outcomes that may be adjusted over 31
time; 32
(b) ((Canopy)) Tree canopy cover goals; 33
(c) Reforestation and tree canopy expansion goals within the 34
city's, town's, and county's boundaries; 35
(d) Restoration of public forests; 36
(e) Achieving forest stand and tree diversity goals;37
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(f) Maximizing vegetated stormwater management with trees and 1
other vegetation that reduces runoff, increases soil infiltration, 2
and reduces stormwater pollution; 3
(g) Environmental health goals specific to air quality, habitat 4
for wildlife, and energy conservation; 5
(h) Vegetation management practices and programs to prevent 6
vegetation from interfering with or damaging utilities and public 7
facilities; 8
(i) Prioritizing planting sites; 9
(j) Standards for tree selection, siting, planting, and pruning;10
(k) Scheduling maintenance and stewardship for new and 11
established trees; 12
(l) Staff and volunteer training requirements emphasizing 13
appropriate expertise and professionalism; 14
(m) Guidelines for protecting existing trees from construction-15
related damage and damage related to preserving territorial views;16
(n) Integrating disease and pest management; 17
(o) Wood waste utilization; 18
(p) Community outreach, participation, education programs, and 19
partnerships with nongovernment organizations; 20
(q) Time frames for achieving plan goals, objectives, and tasks;21
(r) Monitoring and measuring progress toward those benchmarks and 22
goals; 23
(s) Consistency with the urban wildland interface codes developed 24
by the state building code council; 25
(t) Emphasizing landscape and revegetation plans in residential 26
and commercial development areas where tree retention objectives are 27
challenging to achieve; and 28
(u) Maximizing building heating and cooling energy efficiency 29
through appropriate siting of trees for summer shading, passive solar 30
heating in winter, and for wind breaks. 31
(5) The department may use existing tools to assist communities 32
to develop urban forestry ordinances. Ordinances may include, but not 33
be limited to, the following elements: 34
(a) Tree canopy cover, density, and spacing; 35
(b) Tree conservation and retention; 36
(c) Vegetated stormwater runoff management using native trees and 37
appropriate nonnative, nonnaturalized vegetation; 38
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(d) Clearing, grading, protection of soils, reductions in soil 1
compaction, and use of appropriate soils with low runoff potential 2
and high infiltration rates; 3
(e) Appropriate tree siting and maintenance for vegetation 4
management practices and programs to prevent vegetation from 5
interfering with or damaging utilities and public facilities;6
(f) Native species and nonnative, nonnaturalized species 7
diversity selection to reduce disease and pests in urban forests;8
(g) Tree maintenance; 9
(h) Street tree installation and maintenance; 10
(i) Tree and vegetation buffers for riparian areas, critical 11
areas, transportation and utility corridors, and commercial and 12
residential areas; 13
(j) Tree assessments for new construction permitting;14
(k) Recommended forest conditions for different land use types;15
(l) Variances for hardship and safety; 16
(m) Variances to avoid conflicts with renewable solar energy 17
infrastructure, passive solar building design, and locally grown 18
produce; and 19
(n) Permits and appeals. 20
(6) The department must establish optional model urban forestry 21
ordinances and recommendations and deliver technical assistance and 22
planning support to local jurisdictions that decide to utilize the 23
model ordinances and recommendations. These model ordinances and 24
recommendations must:25
(a) Establish criteria for including tree bank programs in urban 26
forestry ordinances;27
(b) Establish criteria for designating areas for tree banks, 28
including that tree banks must be located within areas identified as 29
priority regions under RCW 76.15.100 and areas suffering from adverse 30
environmental factors including, but not limited to, erosion, 31
flooding, air or water pollution, and the urban heat island effect;32
(c) Using the best available science, determine, at a minimum:33
(i) The appropriate ratios of trees planted within the tree bank 34
to trees removed elsewhere within the community; and35
(ii) The appropriate species of trees to be used within the tree 36
bank;37
(d) Provide a tree selection and siting tool for use by local 38
jurisdictions;39
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(e) Provide best practices for maintaining and growing newly 1
planted trees within a tree bank, including by:2
(i) Providing estimates of the cost to maintain and nurture newly 3
planted trees to ensure their survival; and4
(ii) Providing alternative methods for covering those costs, 5
including through the imposition of an appropriate fee related to the 6
use of the tree bank, to ensure that sufficient funds will be 7
available to cover the costs of maintaining and nurturing the newly 8
planted trees;9
(f) Use the best available science to establish criteria for 10
determining trees that, due to their size, environmental impact, or 11
other significance are critical to retain during development;12
(g) Prohibit a jurisdiction from requiring the retention outside 13
of a critical area of any tree deemed by the jurisdiction to be 14
significant, landmark, or otherwise of special import if such 15
retention would affect a proposed development by:16
(i) Reducing the maximum allowed density, number of allowed lots, 17
or maximum allowed floor area ratio;18
(ii) Precluding the construction of middle housing as defined in 19
RCW 36.70A.030 or accessory dwelling units as defined in RCW 20
36.70A.696; or21
(iii) Precluding the ability to establish any required access or 22
utility connections to a lot; and23
(h) Provide options for incentivizing developers to retain trees 24
deemed by a jurisdiction to be significant, landmark, or otherwise of 25
special import including, but not limited to, incentives related to:26
(i) Increasing the allowed building density or height;27
(ii) Reducing minimum required lot sizes;28
(iii) Reducing or eliminating landscaping requirements; and29
(iv) Reducing open space or setback requirements.30
(7)(a) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for 31
this specific purpose, the department shall develop and administer a 32
grant program to provide grants to cities and counties that adopt the 33
model urban forestry ordinances produced by the department, for the 34
purpose of implementing the requirements of the ordinances.35
(b) In order to qualify for a grant, a county or city must have 36
substantially adopted the model urban forestry ordinance as related 37
to the use of tree banks within the county or city, and must allow 38
for the option to utilize a tree bank in the majority of the 39
jurisdiction. Additionally, in order for a city or county with a 40
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population of more than 75,000 to qualify for a grant, the city or 1
county must adopt at least one of the model incentives for the 2
retention of trees deemed by a jurisdiction to be significant, 3
landmark, or otherwise of special import as provided for in the model 4
ordinances. The department may also award grants to a county or city 5
that has adopted, prior to the effective date of this section, 6
ordinances for urban forestry that the department determines, in its 7
discretion, are substantially similar to the model ordinances 8
produced by the department, for the purpose of implementing the 9
county's or city's ordinances. 10
(8) The department may consult with the department of commerce in 11
the process of providing technical assistance, on issues including, 12
but not limited to, intersections between urban forestry programs and 13
growth management act planning. 14
(((7))) (9) The department may use existing and develop 15
additional innovative tools to facilitate successful implementation 16
of urban forestry programs including, but not limited to, 17
comprehensive tool kit packages (tree kits) that can easily be 18
shared, locally adapted, and used by cities, counties, tribes, and 19
community stakeholders. 20
(((8))) (10) The department must encourage communities to include 21
participation and input by vulnerable populations through community 22
organizations and members of the public for urban and community 23
forestry plans in the regions where they are based.24
(((9))) (11) Delivery of resources must be targeted based on the 25
analysis and prioritization provided in RCW 76.15.100.26
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. If specific funding for the purposes of 27
this act, referencing this act by bill or chapter number, is not 28
provided by June 30, 2025, in the omnibus appropriations act, this 29
act is null and void.30
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