Tree service in Yakima County, Washington
Yakima County carries more wildfire risk than most of Washington: the Forest Service ranks its risk to homes above 92 percent of the state’s counties, and wildfire is the second most common entry in its NOAA storm file.
Ranks 14 of 39 Washington counties for wind, ice, snow and storm reports.
68% of reports fall November through February.
FEMA National Risk Index rates winter weather as “Relatively High” here.
+1.0% since 2020 (Census Vintage 2025).
USDA 2023 zone covering most of the county.
Landscaping-services establishments, Census CBP 2023.
Storm records for Yakima County
Fire sits unusually high in Yakima County’s record. NOAA’s Storm Events database holds 140 reports for the county from 2016 through 2026, 14th of Washington’s 39 counties, and wildfire accounts for 23 of them, second only to heavy snow at 80. High wind adds 17, ice storms 7 and winter storms 5.
Winter still brings the volume. January has 33 reports, February 29 and December 26, and 68 percent fall between November and February. Unlike the west side, the summer months are not empty: July through September carry 23 reports between them, much of it fire.
The overall pace has slowed sharply. NOAA logged 17 reports for 2023 through 2025 against 36 for 2020 through 2022, and the peak year remains 2017 with 30. Fewer winter reports put the focus on fire-season work: limbing, thinning and clearing around structures.
Reports by month, 2016 to 2026
| Event type | Reports |
|---|---|
| Heavy Snow | 80 |
| Wildfire | 23 |
| High Wind | 17 |
| Ice Storm | 7 |
| Winter Storm | 5 |
| Winter Weather | 4 |
| Blizzard | 3 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 1 |
Beginning January 2, 2022, a long spell of northwest flow pushed repeated rounds of moisture into the mountains, bringing near-daily snow there and heavy snow with some freezing rain in the valleys, plus strong wind at the start and end. NOAA filed seven reports for Yakima County from that spell, six heavy snow and one high wind, across the Yakima Valley, the Simcoe Highlands and the east slopes of the Cascades. A week of accumulating snow is what bends and breaks orchard and yard trees alike.
NWS forecast zones covering the county: Kittitas Valley; Lower Slopes of the Eastern Washington Cascades Crest; Simcoe Highlands; Upper Slopes of the Eastern Washington Cascades Crest; Yakima Valley.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to June 2026 · NWS zone-county correlation files (2019 to 2026 versions). Checked 2026-10-02. NOAA Storm Events 2016-2026; zone-based events assigned to every county the NWS zone covers using the zone-county correlation file in force on the event date (2019-04-02 file used for 2016-2018).
Hazard ratings
Strong wind: Relatively ModerateIce storm: Relatively LowWinter weather: Relatively HighWildfire: Relatively High
FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025 release) rates Yakima County Relatively High for wildfire and for winter weather, Relatively Moderate for strong wind and Relatively Low for ice storms, with an overall rating of Relatively Moderate. The wildfire score is 98.9.
Those two highs pull tree work in different directions. In winter, snow load is the risk, and the costliest event in the NOAA file was the February 8, 2019 blizzard, which brought near-zero visibility on exposed ridges and about $2.2 million in damage. In summer, the job is creating space between trees and the house; see the defensible space guide.
Wildfire risk to homes: higher than 92% of Washington counties (USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities).
What to do about wildfire exposure: defensible space in Washington and Oregon.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release · USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities (April 2026 download). Checked 2026-10-02.
Burning the debris
The Washington Department of Ecology’s statewide outdoor-burning rules apply in Yakima County; no local clean-air agency rule sits on top. Residential and land-clearing burning is barred in urban growth areas and in cities over 10,000 people, which covers Yakima and Grandview. Where burning is allowed, prohibited materials stay off the pile, someone must attend it, and a 50-foot setback applies, with fire-season restrictions on top.
Full rules, seasons and alternatives: yard debris burning rules in Washington.
Source: Washington Department of Ecology. Checked 2026-10-02.
Power lines and utilities
The electric utility for Yakima County is not mapped on this site yet, so no outage line or clearance policy is shown. Find who serves your address on the utilities page, and because a limb on a line is both an outage and a fire risk here, leave that work to a line-clearance crew.
| Utility | Outage line | Tree trimming requests |
|---|---|---|
| Pacific Power (PacifiCorp) | 1-877-508-5088; text OUT to 722797 (source: https://www.pacificpower.net/outages-safety.html) | request page |
Source: utility vegetation-management pages linked above; WAC 296-24-960 (WA L&I). Checked 2026-10-02.
Cities and towns in Yakima County
Yakima County has 259,185 people (2025 Census estimate, up 0.96 percent since 2020), and Yakima holds 97,458. The city page records no general tree-removal permit on private lots, though street trees can still carry rules.
Grandview at 12,062, Selah at 8,678, Toppenish at 8,635, Union Gap at 6,568 and the smaller towns from Wapato to Mabton have not been researched yet. Ask city hall before cutting, and read the Washington tree removal permit guide.
| Place | Population | Private-tree permit rule |
|---|---|---|
| Yakima | 97,458 | No private-tree permit |
| Sunnyside | 16,430 | Ask the city |
| Grandview | 12,062 | Ask the city |
| Selah | 8,678 | Ask the city |
| Toppenish | 8,635 | Ask the city |
| Union Gap | 6,568 | Ask the city |
| Wapato | 4,607 | Ask the city |
| Moxee | 4,326 | Ask the city |
| Granger | 3,624 | Ask the city |
| Zillah | 3,179 | Ask the city |
| Mabton | 1,959 | Ask the city |
| Tieton | 1,389 | Ask the city |
| Naches | 1,084 | Ask the city |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Vintage 2025 and 2020 Census. Checked 2026-10-02. Permit rules from each city’s code; see the city pages.
Labor index
BLS puts the mean wage for tree trimmers and pruners in Washington at $32.20 an hour; no separate figure is published for the Yakima area, so the statewide number is shown. It is a labor index, not a price, and the modeled crew-hour rate below adds equipment, insurance and disposal.
The Census counted 77 landscaping-services establishments in Yakima County in 2023, spread over 4,295 square miles, so travel time can show up on bids for outlying properties.
Washington statewide: $32.20 per hour mean wage for tree trimmers and pruners (BLS, May 2025); no metro estimate is published, so the statewide figure is shown. This is a labor index, not a price; the modeled crew-hour cost used on this site is $210 (method).
77 landscaping-services establishments were counted in Yakima County in 2023 (Census County Business Patterns, NAICS 561730).
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013 · U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023, NAICS 561730. Checked 2026-10-02.
Climate and growing conditions
Yakima County falls mostly in USDA hardiness zone 7a, with warmer 7b ground in parts of the valley. Choose replacement trees rated for zone 7 or colder that can also take hot, dry summers, and plant them well away from the house if fire risk is a concern. Deep, infrequent watering through the first two summers builds roots that hold.
USDA hardiness zones 7a, 7b (2023 map, by ZIP code).
Source: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (OSU PRISM ZIP data). Checked 2026-10-02.
Nearby counties
- Klickitat County160 storm reports since 2016
- Kittitas County83 storm reports since 2016
- Benton County57 storm reports since 2016
- Skamania County162 storm reports since 2016
- Lewis County78 storm reports since 2016
What to do next
Before fire season, have trees near the house limbed and thinned; before winter, book a tree risk assessment for anything that could fall on the roof under snow. Check Yakima’s street-tree rules before a curbside removal, and confirm whether burning is allowed at your address.
Before you hire, look the company up through the Washington tree service license lookup, and compare the bid with the modeled cost ranges.
Services: tree removal · trimming · stump grinding · emergency. Check any company: Washington license lookup.
Major storms that reached Yakima County
These regional storms produced NOAA Storm Events reports in Yakima County since 2016. Each storm page lists the dates, report counts and the other counties hit.
Sources
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to June 2026, checked 2026-10-02.
- NWS zone-county correlation files (2019 to 2026 versions), checked 2026-10-02.
- FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release, checked 2026-10-02.
- USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities (April 2026 download), checked 2026-10-02.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Vintage 2025 and 2020 Census, checked 2026-10-02.
- U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023, NAICS 561730, checked 2026-10-02.
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (OSU PRISM ZIP data), checked 2026-10-02.
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, SOC 37-3013, checked 2026-10-02.
- Washington Department of Ecology, checked 2026-10-02.
- Pacific Power (PacifiCorp) vegetation management, checked 2026-10-02.
Comparing quotes? Check these eight things first.
Two quotes for the same tree can differ by thousands. The gap is usually in what's included, not the cutting.
We don't vet or license anyone. These are the official lookups; each takes about a minute.
| What | Where | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Oregon CCB license | CCB license search | Active status, bond, insurance on file, complaints |
| Oregon LCB license | LCB verify a license | Landscape contracting license, which covers tree work |
| Washington contractor registration | L&I Verify | Registration, bond, workers' comp, lawsuits, violations |
| ISA Certified Arborist | ISA directory | Current certification and credential number |
How to read them: Oregon guide · Washington guide
Westcoast-Tree.org is an independent information site. If you call a number on this site, the call goes to a tree service that covers your area and we may be paid a referral fee by that company. We don't perform tree work and we don't vet, license or insure anyone. Cost figures are modeled estimates, not quotes (method). Not affiliated with the former Westcoast Tree Care Inc of Tumwater, WA.