City of Merri-bek
Tree controls in Merri-bek
Merri-bek measures trunks at 1.2 metres, which is lower than every neighbouring council and lower than the Australian Standard. It also needs a permit to prune more than 15% of a canopy. Both catch people who assumed the rules were the same as next door.
Brunswick, Brunswick East, Brunswick West, Coburg, Pascoe Vale, Fawkner, Glenroy, Oak Park
At a glance
- Local law
- Moreland City Council General Local Law 2018, still operative under the former name, and consolidated with the General (Amendment) Local Law 2025 adopted 9 July 2025. Commenced 1 February 2018, sunsets 1 February 2028
- Mature tree
- Taller than 8 metres AND trunk 400 mm or wider measured 1.2 metres above ground level
- Measurement height
- 1.2 m. Clause 52.37 and AS 4970:2025 both use 1.4 m, so the local law figure will not match the one in your impact assessment
- Pruning trigger
- A Tree Works Permit is required to prune more than 15% of the tree canopy on private property
- Works in a tree protection zone
- Clause 2.5 also captures works inside the zone without authorisation
- Significant tree register
- Nomination based. A 2021 study identified 492 trees, and owners of 298 properties were notified in May 2022. Published as an interactive map
- Report guide
- Merri-bek publishes an Arboricultural Report Writing Guide 2023, the only dedicated guide of its kind among neighbouring councils
- Qualification
- AQF Level 3 is the minimum for pruning work under the 15% threshold. Council may ask for an AQF Level 5 report during assessment of a permit application
- Fencing spec
- Technical Note C100.10: temporary 1.8 m solid chain mesh fencing in concrete feet, hand excavation only within the root zone
- Amendment C189
- In operation since 1 September 2021. Adds canopy tree landscaping requirements to developments of two or more dwellings
Drawn from Council's published material as at August 2026. Councils update without notice, so confirm anything you are relying on for a lodgement.
The 1.2 metre problem
Merri-bek measures trunk diameter at 1.2 metres above ground level. Clause 52.37 measures circumference at 1.4 metres. AS 4970:2025 measures Diameter at Standard Height at 1.4 metres. Yarra, next door, measures at 1.5 m, with a new local law from 1 September 2026 whose definition is worth confirming. Darebin measures at 1.5 m.
Measure 200 mm further down the trunk and you get a bigger number. On a Brunswick plane tree with any flare at the base, that difference alone can decide whether the tree is caught. Council's own trees page gives the 400 mm figure without saying where to measure it, so you have to go to the local law itself for the 1.2 m. Take the tape to both heights while you are on site, because going back for the second one is a wasted trip.
Pruning over 15% needs a permit
Most councils control removal and lopping. Merri-bek also requires a Tree Works Permit to prune more than 15% of a canopy on private property. A routine crown reduction on a mature tree goes past 15% without much effort. It is the control I see breached most often in Merri-bek, almost always by someone who had no idea it existed.
Works inside the protection zone are captured too
Clause 2.5 does not stop at the tree. It captures works within the Tree Protection Zone without authorisation, and the local law defines that zone. For a builder that means the fence line matters legally, not just as good practice, and it is worth having the zone set and documented before machinery arrives.
Merri-bek's Clause 52.37 guidance is the clearest I have read
Merri-bek gets this right where most do not. Its planning pages give the full three part test with the correct 1.4 m measurement height, list all the relevant zones including Residential Growth and Housing Choice and Transport, state the boundary rule correctly at 6 m from the narrowest street frontage and 4.5 m from the rear, and distinguish vacant land from developed land. It also warns that a planning exemption does not remove the local law permit requirement, which is the dual consent trap most builders hit.
One inconsistency worth knowing: Council's own trees on private property page still refers only to Clause 52.17 native vegetation and does not cross reference 52.37. The planning pages are the accurate ones.
The fencing note still calls the 2009 standard current
Technical Note C100.10, dated September 2022, specifies 1.8 m solid chain mesh fencing in concrete feet and hand excavation within the root zone, which is all sound. It also cites the "current Australian Standard 4970-2009". That word is now wrong. Meet the fencing spec, report to the 2025 standard, and state the equivalence.
A local law review is under way
Merri-bek is reviewing its local law through 2026, with adoption targeted for 11 November 2026 and stated scope including stronger protection for trees and vegetation. No new thresholds have been published yet. If you are planning around today's numbers on a long lead time project, check where the review has landed.
What I do in Merri-bek
Tree Removal Report
Council has asked for an arborist report before it will consider removing your tree. This is that report, and it is usually the whole job.
ResidentialArboricultural Impact Assessment
What councils ask for when your works reach into a tree's root zone. Each tree assessed, the zones calculated to AS 4970:2025, and the encroachment measured and justified.
DevelopmentClause 52.37 Canopy Tree Report
The provision that arrived in September 2025 and now catches trees nothing else reached. Which of yours are caught, whether you need a permit, and what replacement planting you owe.
Residential · PlanningOther councils
Yarra
Clifton Hill, Fitzroy, Collingwood, Richmond, Abbotsford, Carlton North
Darebin
Northcote, Thornbury, Preston, Reservoir, Fairfield, Alphington
Banyule
Ivanhoe, Heidelberg, Eaglemont, Rosanna, Viewbank, Montmorency
Boroondara
Camberwell, Hawthorn, Kew, Balwyn, Glen Iris, Canterbury
Stonnington
Malvern, Toorak, Prahran, Armadale, Glen Iris, South Yarra
Whitehorse
Box Hill, Blackburn, Nunawading, Mitcham, Surrey Hills
Monash
Glen Waverley, Mount Waverley, Clayton, Oakleigh, Chadstone
Bayside
Brighton, Sandringham, Hampton, Black Rock, Beaumaris
The provisions behind these controls
AS 4970:2025 explained
What changed, how the zones are calculated now, and what to do with a council checklist still written in 2009 language.
Clause 52.37 canopy trees
Which trees are caught, the boundary trap, what council may weigh, and how many canopy trees your site has to end up with.
Do you need an arborist report?
A short decision path. Some jobs need three consents and some need none.
Working on a site in Merri-bek?
Send the address and whatever plans you have. I will tell you which controls apply, what reports the permit path needs, and what each one costs, within one business day.