​To use this feature, you must first disable your popup blocker before doing a search.

​​Anyone—whether an individual, business, municipality, or utility—who intends to perform any tree work in a public road right-of-way must first obtain a ​Roadside Tree Permit from the Department of Natural Resources Forest Service. This includes planting new trees, pruning existing ones, or removing trees that pose safety or health concerns. Permit applications are evaluated to ensure the work meets arboricultural standards and serves a legitimate public or environmental need. Conditions such as replanting or long-term maintenance may be included as part of the permit approval.

As a public service, we make general details of issued permits available on DNR Online. Only currently valid permits (i.e., issued within one calendar year of the current date) are returned by the search tool.

The instructions below provide guidance on using the Roadside Tree Permit Search Tool and understanding the information that will be returned.

Instructions:

To review active Roadside Tree Permits, first select a search method (Street Address, ZIP Code, City, or County). Then, type in whatever additional information you would like to specify in the search for box. Please note:

• Street Address: Street Numbers and suffixes may be omitted or abbreviated on issued permits. For the most complete results, we recommend searching only by street name, without the street number or suffixes (e.g., Search for “Main”, not “123 Main Street”).
• ZIP Code: Enter the 5-digit ZIP Code. Some permits may span multiple ZIP codes and may not have a value in this field. These permits can generally be f​ound by searching by County.
• City: Enter name of the municipality/town/city of interest. Some permits may span multiple jurisdictions and not have a value in this field. These permits can generally be found by searching by County.
• County: Enter the county of interest.

Then click the submit query button. NOTE: We use pop-up windows for this fast, easy self-service feature. To use this feature, you must first disable your pop-up blocker before conducting a search. Our pop-up windows are solely for providing the best possible customer service on DNR Online.

Any records that satisfy the search criteria you specified will be returned in a report, which you can use to review details for permits approved in your general area of interest. Below is an example of a ZIP Code search, with explanations of the information included:

 

• Permit #: A unique identifier consisting of a 4-digit year (indicating the year the original Roadside Tree Permit was approved and issued), followed by another 4-digit number that uniquely identifies that permit.
• Proposed: The purpose of the approved tree care work, as identified on the Roadside Tree Permit.
• City: The jurisdiction in which the work will occur. “No Jurisdiction on Permit” may appear, generally for approved permits where work may span several municipalities.
• ZIP: The 5-digit ZIP code in which the approved work on the Roadside Tree Permit will occur.
• County: The county in which the approved work on the Roadside Tree Permit will occur.
• Permitted Activities: A summary of the activities and their respective quantities, approved under this Roadside Tree Permit. Permitted activities include tree removal, tree pruning, tree clearance from overhead utilities, ground disturbance, protection of tree roots, use of pesticides, and tree planting. A variety of units of measure may be used to describe the quantity of the permitted activities (e.g., Tree(s), Feet, Spans, Miles, etc.) to clearly and concisely describe the limits of the work approved by the Roadside Tree Permit. “Miscellaneous work as described in permit comments” may also appear listed as a permitted activity for Roadside Tree Permits where the combination of approved work is complex or needs to be documented in greater detail.