Koala Trees in the Redlands: What You Can and Cannot Remove on Your Block

Why koala trees are protected in the Redlands

We are based in Sheldon, which is rural-residential acreage, mostly bushland, koala habitat, and next to Venman Bushland National Park. Koalas are part of daily life here. They are also the reason tree removal in the Redlands has more rules than almost anywhere else around Brisbane.

Redland City Council's Redlands Coast Koala Conservation Action Plan 2022 to 2027 commits the council to no net loss of native vegetation. That policy flows through into how council assesses tree removal on private land, and it sits alongside the state's koala habitat protections.

The practical effect is that a native tree on a Redlands block, especially on acreage in Sheldon, Mount Cotton, Thornlands or Redland Bay, may be protected by up to three layers of rules: the state koala regulation, the Redland City Plan overlays, and Local Law No. 6. A cocos palm or a camphor laurel on the same block is a different story.

This guide explains which trees count, what the rules say, and what you can still do without approval. It is not legal advice, and we do not claim a permit is or is not needed for any particular tree until we have looked at the block and the maps.

Which trees are koala food trees

Koalas eat eucalypt leaves, but not all eucalypts equally. Redland City Council's Koala Watch fact sheet names four preferred food trees:

• Tallowwood (Eucalyptus microcorys)
• Grey Gum (Eucalyptus propinqua)
• Scribbly Gum (Eucalyptus racemosa)
• Queensland Blue Gum (Eucalyptus tereticornis)

The same fact sheet notes that koalas around Sheldon favour ironbark. Other eucalypts, and non-eucalypt natives, are used for shelter and movement even where they are not the main food, so a mapped koala habitat area is not only about those four species.

Telling gums apart is not always easy. Tallowwood has fibrous bark and a dense crown. Grey Gum sheds bark in patches. Scribbly Gum has the insect scribbles on smooth bark. Blue Gum is the tall, smooth-barked forest tree along creeks. If you are not sure what a tree is, send us a photo of the trunk, the leaves and the whole tree.

The reason species matters is that the state koala protections are about "koala habitat trees" in mapped areas, and council's plan is about native vegetation generally. A gum on a mapped block in Capalaba or Victoria Point may be caught by one or both.

The state koala rules: Planning Regulation 2017

Queensland's south-east koala protections sit in the Planning Regulation 2017. In short, interfering with koala habitat trees in mapped koala priority areas and koala habitat areas needs approval unless an exemption applies.

The exemptions the state lists include:

• A once-off clearing of up to 500m².
• Emergencies.
• Firebreaks.

"Interfering" is a wider word than "removing", which is worth keeping in mind before doing earthworks or building near a mapped tree.

The maps are the key. Whether your block is inside a priority area or habitat area decides whether the regulation applies at all. Sheldon, for one, is koala habitat, and urban lots in Cleveland or Birkdale vary block by block.

Over the top of the state regulation, the Vegetation Management Act 1999 generally treats urban freehold as Category X and leaves the detail to councils. So for most Redlands homeowners, the koala regulation and the council rules are what matter. Use our council tree permit checker as a first pass, and read the wider council permit guide.

Redland City Plan overlays and Local Law No. 6

Redland City Council protects trees on private land in two ways, set out on its trees and vegetation protection page: environmental overlays in the Redland City Plan, and Local Law No. 6 (Protection of Vegetation).

The vegetation clearing fact sheet lists the overlays that can trigger approval:

• Environmental significance overlay.
• Waterway corridors and wetlands overlay.
• Vegetation Protection Orders (VPOs).
• Tree Protection Areas.

In urban zones, the fact sheet allows clearing of up to 500m² without approval. That is for vegetation not otherwise protected; an overlay, a VPO or a koala habitat tree can still apply inside that area.

There was movement on these rules recently. In November 2025, council confirmed that routine trimming along fence lines and near buildings is not regulated under the City Plan, and postponed a proposed overlay amendment that would have affected lots over 1,000m². That amendment may come back, so acreage owners should keep an eye on it.

What this means on the ground: a Redlands block can have a VPO on a single tree, an environmental significance overlay across the back half, and state koala mapping over the lot, all at once. The maps are public, but reading them takes practice. We check them for every quote in the Redlands.

What you can do without approval

Plenty of everyday tree work in the Redlands is fine.

• Routine trimming. Council has confirmed that routine trimming along fence lines and near buildings is not regulated under the City Plan. Clearance pruning, done properly to AS 4373-2007, is our most common Redlands job.
• Bushfire preparation. Council recommends trimming low branches to 2 metres from the ground ahead of bushfire season, which runs July to December. Firebreaks are also an exemption under the state koala rules.
• Emergencies. A tree that has failed or is about to fail is covered by emergency exemptions at state level. Photograph it first.
• Non-native trees. Cocos palms, camphor laurels and umbrella trees are not koala habitat trees. They may still sit inside an overlay, so check. See our cocos palm and weed tree guides.
• Deadwooding and thinning. Removing dead limbs from a gum, or thinning a canopy to reduce storm risk, keeps the tree and its habitat value. See why gums drop limbs.

What is not fine is removing a mapped koala tree because it drops leaves in the pool. If the tree is dangerous, there is a process. If it is just inconvenient, the tree may well have to stay. Our tree pruning page covers the work that keeps big gums safe without removing them.

How we handle koala trees when we quote

Every Redlands removal quote starts with three questions: what species is it, where does it stand, and what do the maps say. If it is a eucalypt on a mapped block, we tell you a permit may apply.

• We identify the species and say whether it is one of the four preferred koala food trees or an ironbark.
• We look for koalas, scratches and scats before any work starts, and stop if there is a koala in the tree.
• We recommend pruning over removal where pruning will solve the problem.
• Where a tree does have to come out, we suggest a replacement planting, in line with the no net loss aim, and can leave the chips as mulch; see mulching and green waste.

We will not remove a tree we think is protected without approval. That protects you as much as the koalas.

Cost for a big Redlands gum is at the upper end of Brisbane guide ranges. 2026 guide figures put trees of 15 to 25 metres at $2,500 to $5,500 and 25 to 35 metres at $5,000 to $10,000. Pruning is far less; see the cost guide. For any tree in Sheldon, Mount Cotton or Ormiston, get a free quote or call 0466 270 743.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Sheldon, Queensland
• Redland City Council: Koala Conservation Action Plan 2022-2027
• Redland City Council: Koala Watch fact sheet
• Queensland Government: koala legislation and policy
• Redland City Council: trees and vegetation protection
• Redland City Council: vegetation clearing fact sheet
• Redland Bayside News: Redlands vegetation rules
• Dynamic Tree Solutions: Brisbane tree removal cost 2026