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Tree Removal Permits and Rules in Camino

Not sure if a permit is needed to take down a tree in Camino? Call us now at (530) 441-2256. We'll point you to the right office, and a tree company who knows the rules can be set up. The call is free.

Call (530) 441-2256or use the online request form

Here we cover tree removal permits in Camino. A tree removal company that serves Camino handles tree removal permits, and we book it.

Short answer first around Camino

For one dead or risky tree on your own lot, there may be little paperwork. But "may" isn't "will." Three things can change the answer: where the tree stands, what kind it is, and whether the logs will be sold.

We're not the permit office, and we don't give legal advice. Rules change. This page tells you who to ask and why.

Who makes the rules in Camino

Camino is a census-designated place. That means it's not a city. There's no Camino city hall and no city tree code. The county and the state set the rules, plus your fire district.

Placerville is different. It is a city, and the city zoning code says projects should follow the council's Tree Preservation Guidelines. It also says plans must show any trees proposed for removal. If your lot is inside the Placerville city limits, ask the city first.

Camino's fire service comes under the county fire district. Its formal name is El Dorado County Fire Protection District. Ask its prevention staff what's needed near your buildings.

Permits that may touch your job around Camino

Defensible space rule

El Dorado County has a vegetation and defensible space rule, Chapter 8.09. It's about fuel near buildings. The state law behind it, PRC 4291, asks for 100 feet.

Tree removal permits

Rescue Fire Department notes that some clearing may need tree removal permits. If you plan to cut an oak or a big shade tree, ask the county before you start.

Burn permit

Burn permits are issued online and free of charge, says the fire district. Burning is only for dry plants from your own land, never trash.

Burn day call

Phone (530) 621-5897 before any burn to learn if it's a burn day. Burning is limited to times outside declared fire season.

CAL FIRE timber rules

These can apply when the logs from your tree are sold. See the next section.

Contractor license

California treats tree work as contractor work. Get a license number from any tree removal company, and check it with the state's lookup, Check a License.

Selling logs: the CAL FIRE side around Camino

Selling logs can turn a yard job into a timber job in the eyes of the state. California Public Resources Code 4527 says timber operations means cutting or removing timber from timberlands for commercial purposes.

The state's forest rules then list exemptions. They're in 14 CCR 1038. Here's what they say in plain words:

• Dead, dying or diseased trees of any size qualify when the cut is less than a tenth of the typical timber volume per acre.
• Cutting trees to meet PRC 4290 and 4291 is exempt. Only trees within 150 feet of an approved structure count under that one.
• Taking out trees killed by a wildfire is exempt if the fire was no more than three years before the notice. Or if a state of emergency order covers the land.
• An exemption notice is good for one year from when CAL FIRE gets it.

The Caldor Fire was in 2021. That's well past three years. So for trees killed only by that fire, the first wildfire route is shut. The emergency order route depends on whether an order covers your land.

This is the part where a forester earns their fee. Ask your tree removal company: are the logs being sold, and who files the paperwork? If nobody is selling logs, none of this may matter.

What permits cost

Permit and paper costs vary by who asks. These are national guide numbers, not county fees.

Numbers from Angi's tree removal page (updated Oct 2026) and HomeGuide's tree removal and arborist pages (Dec 2025 and Feb 2026).

Burn permits cost nothing. The county's chipping program, when grant money lasts, is free too. Most Camino jobs will see no permit fee at all. Do ask.

Why we bring up permits at all

A tree removal company who knows the county can save you a stop-work call. A tree company who doesn't can leave you holding a fine. We can't tell you that a given pro knows. But we ask, and you should too.

Some quick questions to put to the tree removal company:

• Does this tree need a permit? Who says so?
• Are you selling the logs? Who handles CAL FIRE?
• Where does the wood go? (Beetle wood needs care.)
• Are you hauling, chipping or leaving the debris?
• What's your license number?

Step by step

1. Call (530) 441-2256. Or send the estimate form if you'd rather type.
2. Say what tree it is, where it stands, and if the logs will be sold.
3. We find a tree company who knows our county.
4. The tree company looks at the tree and says if a permit or notice is needed.
5. You get the price in writing, with any fees listed.
6. The tree removal company does the paperwork that belongs to the job, or tells you who does.

Want tree removal permits in Camino handled? The line is (530) 441-2256. We set tree removal permits up with a tree removal company.

Nearby

Placerville has its own city rules, so see tree removal in Placerville. For the 100 foot rule, read defensible space tree removal. The Camino home page sums it all up.