When clearing becomes a permit
Removing one tree and clearing a lot are different things in the eyes of metro counties. What the published rules say:
| Where | What they say about clearing |
|---|---|
| Unincorporated DeKalb | Six to nine trees may need a clearing and grubbing permit; ten or more on residential property may be land disturbance needing a Land Disturbance Permit, after a meeting with the County Arborist. Nothing disturbed in the 75-foot stream buffer without a county variance, or in the 25-foot buffer without one from the state’s Environmental Protection Division. |
| Unincorporated Gwinnett | Commercial, office, industrial and multi-family property needs a Land Disturbance Permit to remove trees. On a home lot, trees in buffers, open space, tree save areas and within 2,000 feet of the Chattahoochee are off limits or need county review. |
| Unincorporated Cobb | Land-disturbing work generally needs a Land Disturbance Permit; a “Clearing Only” permit allows trees to be cut and removed but not stumps pulled or soil disturbed. |
| City of Atlanta | Since June 25, 2025, anyone whose project may affect trees meets with the city’s arborist plan reviewers before applying. |
Other cities and counties have their own versions; ask before the first tree is cut.
Water on the lot
Creeks, wet-weather ditches and ponds carry buffers that limit what may be cut and especially what may be dug. A buffer cleared by mistake cannot be put back quickly, so find the water on the plat or the county’s map before cutting.
What clearing involves
- Marking. Flag the trees to keep, and keep machines away from their roots.
- Cutting. Trees felled or taken down in sections near houses and lines.
- Brush. Chipped and hauled, or mulched in place by a machine with a mulching head.
- Stumps. Cut low, ground out or pulled; pulling stumps is soil disturbance and may be what triggers the permit.
- Grading. A separate job, with its own rules on erosion control.
Say which of these you want on the call, and walk the lot with whoever comes out to price it.
Checked against the sources below on 2026-10-11.