What are Tree Preservation Orders?
Trees are an important and attractive feature of the urban environment and Walsall Council has legal powers to protect them for the benefits they bring. The council can protect trees by making Tree Preservation Orders meaning that trees protected in this way cannot be pruned or felled without the council’s permission. The borough currently has 860 Tree Preservation Orders, each protecting from one tree to whole woodlands. Trees in each of the borough’s 18 Conservation Areas have more limited protection. Most applications to fell and prune trees are decided by the Head of Development and Delivery. In some cases, for example, where there is exceptional public interest, application may be decided by the council’s Development Control Committee. While trees can be very attractive they can sometimes cause damage, especially as they mature. The council therefore is careful to maintain the borough’s tree cover by securing replacements for protected trees that have to be felled.
