The rule people think they have
The 10/50 vegetation clearing code allows eligible landowners in designated areas to clear trees within 10 metres of a home and underlying vegetation within 50 metres, without approval. It was introduced after the 2013 fires and it was, for a while, widely applicable.
Then it was misused. Trees were removed for views and for convenience, and in 2015 the entitlement area was substantially reduced. Much of Sydney's North Shore — including large parts of Ku-ring-gai — now falls outside the entitlement.
So the first thing to do is not assume. Check your actual address against the Rural Fire Service's entitlement tool. Two houses in the same street can sit differently.
Bushfire-prone mapping is a different thing
Being on land mapped as bushfire-prone triggers planning requirements when you build or renovate. It does not, by itself, give you a clearing entitlement. Owners on the Hornsby bushland fringe, at Mount Colah, Hornsby Heights, and along the St Ives edge toward Ku-ring-gai Chase get these two things confused regularly, and it is an expensive confusion.
What actually reduces risk
The evidence on house loss is fairly consistent, and it is mostly not about removing big trees. Ember attack causes the majority of losses. That means gutters full of leaf litter, fine fuels against the wall, mulch beds under windows, firewood stacked on the deck, and flammable shrubs forming a ladder from the ground into the canopy.
Useful work, most of which is achievable within the rules:
- Clearing accumulated deadwood and hung-up material from trees near the house
- Removing ladder fuels — the shrub layer that carries fire from ground level into the crown
- Pruning branches back off the roof and away from gutters
- Removing dead standing trees close to the building
- Keeping the fine fuel load down within the immediate defendable space
Removing a healthy mature blackbutt forty metres down the gully does considerably less for your house than cleaning the gutters does.
Where an approved pathway exists
If your property has an asset protection zone under a bushfire management plan or a development consent, that is a legitimate route and the work is defined. Likewise, a development application on bushfire-prone land will specify what vegetation management is required. Those are documented processes with real scope, and a tree crew should be working to the document.
Getting it assessed
Ring (02) 9090 4915 and someone will walk the property with you and tell you what is fuel management, what needs consent, and what is not going to be permitted. The Hornsby and St Ives pages cover the local position, and the FAQ and blog have more.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if 10/50 applies to my property?
The NSW Rural Fire Service publishes an online entitlement area tool where you enter your address. Check that, for your exact address, before cutting anything — neighbouring streets can fall on different sides of the line. Being inside a bushfire-prone mapped area is not the same thing as being inside the 10/50 entitlement area.
What is an asset protection zone?
A managed area of reduced fuel between a building and the bushland, specified in a bushfire assessment or a development consent. Within an approved zone, canopy is generally thinned rather than cleared and surface fuels are kept low. It is a documented pathway with defined requirements, not an open licence to clear.