Tree removal in Baulkham Hills: what's local
Mostly The Hills, partly Parramatta
A small section south of the Hills Motorway and Windsor Road intersection belongs to the City of Parramatta, which has its own rules on our Parramatta permit page. The rest of the suburb is The Hills Shire.
Bidjigal Reserve
Once called Excelsior Reserve, it runs through Baulkham Hills along Darling Mills Creek. Most of it is dry sandstone gully forest, with Blue Gum High Forest and ridgetop woodland in places. Trees on the reserve side of a back fence aren't yours to prune or remove.
Rare forest in the suburb
Small fragments of Western Sydney Dry Rainforest grow here, and NSW lists Blue Gum High Forest, found in the Baulkham Hills area among others, as critically endangered. The Hills says its exemptions stop where a threatened ecological community is involved.
Old farm subdivisions
Land grants here were cut into farms from the mid-19th century, then into the house blocks you see today. Where a big tree sits on or near a boundary, the neighbour's view matters as much as council's.
Endeavour Energy's network
The Hills Shire is on Endeavour Energy's list of franchise councils, so a tree on a street line goes to Endeavour, not to an arborist.
Tree removal permits in Baulkham Hills
- The tree sheds leaves, fruit, bark, cones or twigs.
- You'd like a better view.
- You're worried a healthy tree might one day fall.
- It overshadows the house or garden.
- Roots have lifted a driveway or path a little.
What helps an application instead?
A real problem, shown clearly: decay, a structural defect, damage the tree is doing, or a risk to people. Photos help, and an arborist's written assessment helps more.
If council says no, it will re-inspect on a written request backed by information such as a report from an AQF Level 5 arborist, a plumber or a structural engineer. AQF Level 5 is the Diploma of Arboriculture, the qualification consulting arborists hold for tree health and risk reports. Our arborist reports page explains what goes in one.
When a removal is approved, The Hills makes it a condition that a replacement tree is planted elsewhere on the property for each one taken out.
Hiring an arborist in Baulkham Hills
Get an arborist to look at it before you apply, and ask them straight out whether there's a defect council would recognise. If there isn't, a careful prune to the Australian standard is usually a better result than a refused application. If there is, get it in writing and lead with it.