Clearing before and after a natural disaster
On this page
You can undertake specified clearing to prepare for, or respond to, emergencies and natural disasters without notifying us or applying for a permit. The information on this page explains more about disaster and emergency situations (like severe weather events) and the types of clearing you may be able to undertake on your property.
Clearing native vegetation can be regulated by local, state and the federal governments. Before you start clearing, check with your local council to understand any local laws that may apply to your land, as they are unique to each local council and are in addition to the regulations found here. This page outlines the Queensland Government native vegetation clearing regulations found in the Vegetation Management Act 1999 and Planning Act 2016.
Current disaster situation declaration areas and advice
Cleaning-up after a disaster situation
If the government has formally declared your district a disaster situation area under the Disaster Management Act 2003, you don’t need to get our approval or to notify us if the clearing is necessary to prevent or minimise any of the following:
- loss of human life, or illness or injury
- property loss or damage
- damage to the environment.
This applies for 1 year following the disaster declaration.
You can also remove fallen woody debris from existing tracks, roads, fire management lines and firebreaks.
Clearing exemption dates in disaster declared areas
| Severe flooding event in North Queensland—January and February 2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Local government area | Date declared | Exemption valid to |
| Townsville and Innisfail districts Burdekin Shire Council, Charters Towers Regional Council, Flinders Shire Council, Hinchinbrook Shire Council, Palm Island Aboriginal Shire Council, Richmond Shire Council, Townsville City Council, Cassowary Coast Regional Council | 1 February 2025 | 1 February 2026 |
| Cyclone Alfred in South East Queensland—March 2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Local government area | Date declared | Exemption valid to |
| Brisbane District Brisbane City Council, Redland City Council | 6 March 2025 | 6 March 2026 |
| Gold Coast District Gold Coast City Council | 6 March 2025 | 6 March 2026 |
| Logan District Logan City Council, Scenic Rim Regional Council | 6 March 2025 | 6 March 2026 |
| Moreton District Moreton Bay Regional Council | 6 March 2025 | 6 March 2026 |
| Sunshine Coast District Noosa Shire Council, Sunshine Coast Regional Council | 6 March 2025 | 6 March 2026 |
| Ipswich District Ipswich City Council, Lockyer Valley Regional Council, Somerset Regional Council | 10 March 2025 | 10 March 2026 |
| Toowoomba District Toowoomba Regional Council, Western Downs Regional Council | 10 March 2025 | 10 March 2026 |
| Severe flooding event in South West Queensland—March and April 2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Local government area | Date declared | Exemption valid to |
| Charleville District Bulloo Shire Council, Murweh Shire Council, Paroo Shire Council, and Quilpie Shire Council. | 28 March 2025 | 28 March 2026 |
| Longreach District Barcaldine Regional Council, Barcoo Shire Council, Blackall-Tambo Regional Council, Longreach Regional Council, Winton Shire Council | 29 March 2025 | 29 March 2026 |
Cleaning-up after emergencies (e.g. severe weather events)
You are able to clear some vegetation and fallen trees on your property to support severe weather event clean-up and recovery.
You also do not need to notify us or seek approval for:
- clearing that is necessary to remove or reduce the imminent risk that vegetation poses to serious personal injury
- clearing that is necessary to remove or reduce damage and imminent risk to infrastructure.
On freehold and leasehold land, you can also undertake clearing:
- to maintain existing infrastructure including buildings, fences, roads, stockyards and vehicular tracks – this includes removing fallen trees and woody debris
- to create a necessary road or vehicular track up to a maximum 10 metres wide in a 'least concern' regional ecosystem (you can check the ecosystem of your property by requesting a vegetation management map).
Preparing your property for a natural disaster
Firebreaks and fire management lines
Special provisions apply to clearing for fire management.
Other clearing under a code or development approval
You may be able to undertake other clearing to mitigate the impact of natural disasters using an accepted development vegetation clearing code.
These codes are self-assessable. You must notify us before starting to clear, and make sure you follow the requirements listed in the code. The codes in the following table have relevant provisions.
For any clearing beyond this scope, you’ll need to apply for a development approval.
| Code | Vegetation types | Natural disaster provisions |
|---|---|---|
| Necessary environmental clearing | Category B, C and R vegetation across Queensland | Flood preparation: removal of vegetation from a watercourse to mitigate flooding |
| Clearing for infrastructure | Category B, C and R vegetation across Queensland | Clearing for firebreaks in non-coastal areas |
| Clearing for infrastructure | Category C and R vegetation across Queensland | Clearing for fire management lines |
| Managing regulated regrowth vegetation | Category C and R vegetation, across Queensland | Clearing for public safety risk |
Find out more
- Find out more about other laws that apply to clearing.
- Find out more about bushfires and rural fire safety.
- Contact your local rural fire service.
- Find out about deferring your land rent or instalment if you’ve been impacted by a disaster.
- Find out about repairs to groundwater bores and spears.
- Find out about watercourse works associated with emergencies and disasters.
- Read about assistance for disaster-impacted Queenslanders.
- Find out about low-interest loans for disaster recovery for rural businesses and primary producers.