Draft review of City of Nedlands Street Trees Policy

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Consultation has concluded

The City of Nedlands is a beautiful, picturesque and inclusive location where a diverse community of people of all ages can live, work and play in a safe and supportive environment. It has a unique character and plays a distinctive role in the social and commercial attraction of the Western suburbs. Maintaining and delivering high standard infrastructure, services and activities, accessible to all, is a priority for the City. Such features include well maintained and serviced parks and gardens and tree-lined streets.

The City's community obtains tremendous benefits from its urban forest, of which street trees are an important component. Such benefits include the beautifying of streetscapes and suburbs, providing a sense of place, improved community wellbeing, increased property values, shade, significant evaporative cooling and providing habitat for fauna.

Street trees are increasingly becoming recognised throughout Australia as important community assets. The extent of the benefit provided is in most circumstances, directly linked to the combined area of canopy cover, which in turn is linked to the number, type and size of street trees.

The City of Nedlands is inviting comments from residents on the draft revision of the City’s Street Trees Policy (Policy) and Approved Street Trees Species List.

The Street Trees Policy was last updated in 2015 prior to an increase in the development on private land experienced since the gazettal of Local Planning Scheme 3 (LPS 3) in 2019. The extent of the increase in development in recent times has resulted in a loss of tree canopy cover on private land and has impacted on the preservation of existing street trees.

In 2018, foreshadowing the implementation of LPS 3, Council adopted the Urban Forest Strategy (Strategy). A key component of this Strategy was management of the City’s public tree assets. The Strategy rightly identified the future importance of public tree assets, inclusive of street trees. Such tree will play an increasingly significant role in maintaining the City’s urban forest canopy cover and its’ quality living environment.

The draft revised Policy endeavours to strengthen protections and expansion of the City’s street tree assets.

The draft revisions proposed to the current Policy and List can be summarised as follows:

  • Improving provisions which seek to protect and preserve existing street trees including strengthened deterrents for unauthorised damage or removal of street trees
  • Planting of street trees will occur on all nature strips/verges other than in exceptional circumstances
  • Provisions designed to deliver a greater canopy coverage area from street trees into the future
  • Development and implementation of a Significant Street Tree register providing additional protections to significant street trees
  • Increased requirements for new developments to consider and retain street trees during the design phase
  • Revision of the Preferred Street Tree Species List to now be named the Approved Street Tree Species List comprising default species, preferred species and species that may be considered by exception

For reference, the current Policy can be viewed here and the current List here.

How to find out more

To provide you with further information on the draft revision of the Policy and List, details can be found in the text below and in the right sidebar on this site - including documents with the full draft revised Policy, timeframes and FAQ's including an outline of the process for Council adopting the Policy and List.


How can I make a comment about the draft revision of the Policy and the List?

Stakeholders are invited to submit feedback online via email to council@nedlands.wa.gov.au, using the subject line: Draft Review of Nedlands Street Tree Policy.

Feedback received will be taken into consideration in the development of formal recommendations by the City’s Administration to the Council which will make the final decision on the draft Policy and List.

Any queries relating to this item can be made by phone on (08) 9273 3500, or email council@nedlands.wa.gov.au(External link)

Please note that written submissions are not considered confidential and may be referred to during the decision-making process. Personal details such as names and addresses may also be the subject of Freedom of Information requests and included as attachments to relevant reports.

COMMENT PERIOD: 9 NOVEMBER 2021 TO 3 DECEMBER 2021 (5pm)



The City of Nedlands is a beautiful, picturesque and inclusive location where a diverse community of people of all ages can live, work and play in a safe and supportive environment. It has a unique character and plays a distinctive role in the social and commercial attraction of the Western suburbs. Maintaining and delivering high standard infrastructure, services and activities, accessible to all, is a priority for the City. Such features include well maintained and serviced parks and gardens and tree-lined streets.

The City's community obtains tremendous benefits from its urban forest, of which street trees are an important component. Such benefits include the beautifying of streetscapes and suburbs, providing a sense of place, improved community wellbeing, increased property values, shade, significant evaporative cooling and providing habitat for fauna.

Street trees are increasingly becoming recognised throughout Australia as important community assets. The extent of the benefit provided is in most circumstances, directly linked to the combined area of canopy cover, which in turn is linked to the number, type and size of street trees.

The City of Nedlands is inviting comments from residents on the draft revision of the City’s Street Trees Policy (Policy) and Approved Street Trees Species List.

The Street Trees Policy was last updated in 2015 prior to an increase in the development on private land experienced since the gazettal of Local Planning Scheme 3 (LPS 3) in 2019. The extent of the increase in development in recent times has resulted in a loss of tree canopy cover on private land and has impacted on the preservation of existing street trees.

In 2018, foreshadowing the implementation of LPS 3, Council adopted the Urban Forest Strategy (Strategy). A key component of this Strategy was management of the City’s public tree assets. The Strategy rightly identified the future importance of public tree assets, inclusive of street trees. Such tree will play an increasingly significant role in maintaining the City’s urban forest canopy cover and its’ quality living environment.

The draft revised Policy endeavours to strengthen protections and expansion of the City’s street tree assets.

The draft revisions proposed to the current Policy and List can be summarised as follows:

  • Improving provisions which seek to protect and preserve existing street trees including strengthened deterrents for unauthorised damage or removal of street trees
  • Planting of street trees will occur on all nature strips/verges other than in exceptional circumstances
  • Provisions designed to deliver a greater canopy coverage area from street trees into the future
  • Development and implementation of a Significant Street Tree register providing additional protections to significant street trees
  • Increased requirements for new developments to consider and retain street trees during the design phase
  • Revision of the Preferred Street Tree Species List to now be named the Approved Street Tree Species List comprising default species, preferred species and species that may be considered by exception

For reference, the current Policy can be viewed here and the current List here.

How to find out more

To provide you with further information on the draft revision of the Policy and List, details can be found in the text below and in the right sidebar on this site - including documents with the full draft revised Policy, timeframes and FAQ's including an outline of the process for Council adopting the Policy and List.


How can I make a comment about the draft revision of the Policy and the List?

Stakeholders are invited to submit feedback online via email to council@nedlands.wa.gov.au, using the subject line: Draft Review of Nedlands Street Tree Policy.

Feedback received will be taken into consideration in the development of formal recommendations by the City’s Administration to the Council which will make the final decision on the draft Policy and List.

Any queries relating to this item can be made by phone on (08) 9273 3500, or email council@nedlands.wa.gov.au(External link)

Please note that written submissions are not considered confidential and may be referred to during the decision-making process. Personal details such as names and addresses may also be the subject of Freedom of Information requests and included as attachments to relevant reports.

COMMENT PERIOD: 9 NOVEMBER 2021 TO 3 DECEMBER 2021 (5pm)