Tallinn plans photo checks and clearer tree felling rules

Tallinn plans to revise its tree felling regulations to make the rules clearer, reduce administrative work and introduce more digital solutions, ERR reported. The Tallinn Environmental and Utilities Department is preparing the changes, with a complete draft expected for discussion this autumn.

Kaili Lemberg, head of the department’s direct services division, said the changes would not create an entirely new system but address problems identified in daily work.

The revised rules are intended to balance nature protection, modern working methods and simpler procedures for residents, she said.

Tree condition could be assessed from photos

The amendments would more clearly define when residents need a tree felling permit and when a permit for maintenance pruning is sufficient. Lemberg said residents need to know, for example, whether permission is required for every tree branch that is cut.

The department also wants to reduce the need for officials to inspect trees listed in felling applications in person. Photos and map applications could be used to assess a tree’s condition, particularly when it is clearly dead.

Lemberg acknowledged that this approach could create a risk of fraud. Officials would still have to verify that the tree shown in a photograph is the same tree that is later felled.

The regulation would also set out the rules and requirements for replacement planting more clearly.

In addition to revising the regulation, the department plans to update its internal procedures and the information system that has been in use for about 18 months. The aim is to make applications easier for plot owners and construction companies that need to remove trees because of building work.

Lemberg said it should become clear at an early stage of construction-related tree felling whether replacement planting will be required and to what extent.

Possible buffer before felling

The department is also analysing how tree felling permits can be challenged and whether a waiting period should be introduced between the issuing of a permit and the felling of a tree.

At present, a tree can legally be felled on the same day that a permit is issued, even though the formal period for challenging the permit is 30 days.

Lemberg said the draft regulation could be completed this autumn for wider discussion. She added that anyone challenging a permit would still need a legal connection to the matter, such as being an adjoining property owner or living in the affected area.

She said the department considered mature urban greenery valuable and that existing trees needed to be preserved and protected.