Land clearing in Washington

Land clearing rules across Washington

Debris is the rule that decides most clearing budgets. Ecology’s rules under RCW 70A.15.5020 and WAC 173-425 ban residential and land-clearing burning in urban growth areas and in cities over 10,000 where alternatives exist. On lands under DNR fire protection, WAC 332-24-205 requires a written permit for piles outside rule-burn conditions, bars fire within 50 feet of a structure or 500 feet of forest slash, and DNR does not permit land-clearing debris burns at all. Plan to chip, grind or haul.

City codes control the trees. Of the 59 cities we tracked, 13 require a removal permit and 30 in some cases, and clearing for development is where retention minimums bite: Federal Way requires 25 tree units per residential acre, and Bonney Lake protects exceptional trees of 30 inches and up.

Clearing contractors need L&I registration under chapter 18.27 RCW. Near property lines, a survey is cheaper than RCW 64.12.030, which allows treble damages for cutting a neighbor’s trees.

What land clearing costs in Washington

The modeled range below scales with acreage, tree density and how the debris leaves, with BLS’s statewide mean of $32.20 an hour for tree workers as the labor index. It is a wage, not a price (method).

Because burning is off the table in most urban areas, chipping, grinding and hauling make up a large share of the bill. Stumps add a second pass, and slope, wet ground and large conifers that need felling before the machines can work push hours up.

Modeled estimate, not quotes (method): crew-hours × $210 per crew-hour; ×1.25 within 10 ft of a structure, ×1.3 with no truck access; a crane day adds $1,500–$3,500; stump grinding is separate.

Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013. Checked 2026-10-02.

Storm season and timing in Washington

Machines need firm ground, and the state’s storm data shows when that is scarce. NOAA logged 6,231 storm reports in Washington, with heavy snow the top type in all eight busiest counties, from Spokane (707) and Okanogan (581) to Douglas (291) and Skamania (162), peaking from December through February.

Summer is clearing season, but it is also fire season on DNR-protected land, which is why the DNR permit rules and the 500-foot slash setback matter. Plan to start after the ground dries and finish debris removal before burn restrictions or fall rain close the window. Our guide to defensible space covers clearing done for fire risk.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to June 2026 · NWS zone-county correlation files (2019 to 2026 versions). Checked 2026-10-02.

Land clearing by city

There are no city-level land clearing pages yet; the city tree removal pages carry each city’s thresholds and retention rules. The strictest codes are in Lacey (4 inches DBH), and in Bellevue, Bonney Lake, Burien, Des Moines and Federal Way (6 inches).

Retention rules, more than thresholds, shape a clearing job. Federal Way’s 25 tree units per acre and Bellevue’s 24-inch landmark class can force a site plan that keeps trees standing. Rural lots outside city limits fall under county rules and DNR, which the permit guide covers.

• Seattle784,777
• Spokane230,783
• Tacoma229,816
• Vancouver199,698
• Bellevue154,193
• Kent134,871
• Everett113,567
• Spokane Valley108,405
• Renton104,975
• Federal Way99,729
• Yakima97,458
• Kirkland97,410
• Bellingham96,395
• Kennewick88,366
• Auburn86,301
• Pasco82,848
• Redmond82,506
• Marysville77,686
• Shoreline66,542
• Sammamish66,110
• Richland65,258
• Lakewood62,755
• Lacey58,833
• Olympia56,724
• Bothell52,199
• Burien51,859
• Bremerton45,482
• Edmonds42,748
• Puyallup42,682
• Lynnwood42,132
• Lake Stevens42,091
• Issaquah39,423
• Longview38,362
• Wenatchee35,547
• University Place35,479
• Mount Vernon35,193
• SeaTac34,578
• Walla Walla34,058
• Pullman33,756
• Des Moines33,032
• Maple Valley28,482
• Tumwater28,010
• Camas27,749
• Moses Lake27,469
• Mountlake Terrace25,430
• Mercer Island25,422
• Bainbridge Island24,691
• Kenmore24,249
• Oak Harbor24,083
• Battle Ground23,513
• Bonney Lake22,139
• Arlington22,031
• Tukwila22,003
• Covington21,496
• Ellensburg21,308
• Mukilteo21,239
• Mill Creek20,902
• Port Angeles20,146
• Monroe20,025

Other tree services in Washington

Tree removal in Washington · Tree trimming in Washington · Stump grinding in Washington · Emergency tree service in Washington · Arborist services in Washington

What to do next

Before you get a bid, find out whether the lot is in a city or urban growth area, whether any trees meet the city’s threshold, and whether the land is under DNR fire protection. Those three answers decide how the debris can leave.

Check the contractor’s L&I registration through the license lookup guide. When you are ready, the call button connects you with a local land clearing service (land clearing overview).

Land clearing across Washington and Oregon · cost guide · all of Washington.