A Record of Lost Trees
We simply don’t know how many of the last 6,000 have been lost in the past several years.
Since the recent Trees and Housing ordinance, passed in May 2023, removed virtually all protections for large trees during the development process, we believe there is an increased need to document the accelerated destruction of our majestic trees during development so that ultimately this flawed ordinance can be fixed and we will have both housing and large trees.
Have you seen a majestic tree that appears to be at-risk of removal?
Our volunteers are monitoring the SDCI Notices of Tree Work for removals of exceptional trees and groves. The majority of tree removal notices comply with the Seattle tree code. However, in our eight months of monitoring, we have found nearly a 20 percent error rate regarding: tree species, size, membership in a tree grove, being in an Environmentally Critical Area or public right of way, or absence of SDCI authorization. Identifying these errors ahead of time has saved a number of majestic trees.
This is where you can help!
We need eyes on all zip codes in Seattle. We ask that when we publish this list on our website weekly, that you take a moment to browse through and see if there are any trees in your neighborhood/Zip Code that you know will be impacted. If you can, please take a moment to look at this site and see if it correlates to what is written. For example, we recently came across a listing that had two front yard trees cited for removal, when in fact, there were no trees in the front yard, only larger protected trees in the backyard. A volunteer on the block was able to check and verify this discrepancy.
If you see a tree or trees that appear to be slated for removal, find guidance and step-by-step instructions at Investigate a Removal (at Tree Action Seattle).
Find a Tree to Investigate
Explore the spreadsheet below for the most recent trees slated for removal. Once you’ve found a tree you’d like to investigate, go visit it in person to look for discrepancies in tree size, geolocation, or anything else that may differ from what’s listed for that tree in the table below.
Once you’ve completed these steps and if you find discrepancies with what is listed below, please contact us for next steps.
Gallery of Lost Trees
40" Douglas Fir at 2817 36th Ave West
40" Douglas Fir at 2817 36th Ave West
30" Douglas Fir at 341 NE 90th Street. Developer Legacy Capital Group
43" Douglas Fir at 4134 SW Southern Street
Western Red Cedar at 5613 32nd SW
43" Douglas Fir at 4134 SW Southern Street
60" Dawn Redwood at 4542 West Cramer Street. Roots damaged during construction resulted in removal.
40" Douglas Fir at 827 NE 98th Street. Developer Legacy Capital Group
Will you help us create a lost tree census?
Share photographs of, and details about the felled trees.
We'll count them and present the information in community forums.
The simplest way to send us your tree information is to enter it directly via our Google Form:
If you need to send your data to The Last 6000 via email instead, download and complete the Input Form via button below. Then send it to us here.