Forestry

We remove trees when they are a safety concern based on the three "D's" - Dead, Diseased or Dying. We prioritize removal schedules by severity of the issue. The City removes trees all-year-round.

As a guideline, the Urban Forest department will prioritize each work order based on the following criteria:

Emergency

Tree poses immediate safety concerns and danger to the public. For example:

• Tree trunk or large branch has fallen across a road, blocking traffic
• Tree is splitting, cracking and/or leaning, showing signs of imminent failure

High

Tree interferes with City infrastructure, is damaging property, has been approved for removal due to building/development, has been approved due to confirmed disease and/or obstructs public or service access. For example:

• Removal of tree to repair existing utilities
• Branches rubbing against a building
• Tree blocking sanitation service delivery and/or prevent vehicle damage
• Tree root system has entered the sewer system on a private residence and removal has proven to help ongoing costs to clear the lines
• Paving program
• Tree is causing sight line or visibility issues

Low

General tree pruning and maintenance. For example:

• Tree needs pruning for the health of the tree and to relieve the weight of low hanging branches
• City-owned tree has die-back but is not considered a hazard

Every spring our Urban Forest department receives hundreds of work requests. It can take our staff months to complete the large number of requests we get.

A windstorm can prevent us from getting to your tree right away, as safety hazards and dangerous trees take priority and move to the top of our work list.

The City prunes private trees that impede access to sidewalks, roadways or block the view of signage.  Right of way access is to be provided to ensure the safety of pedestrians and drivers.  In addition, trees that are categorized as Emergency or possibly High priority.

DED is caused by a fungus spread by tiny elm bark beetles that breed under the bark of dead or dying elm wood. If that wood contains the DED fungus, each new generation of beetles can infect healthy elms. The Government of Saskatchewan website Dutch Elm Disease provides information on how you can help prevent DED.

DED was first discovered in Saskatchewan in 1981 and continues to be found in more areas of the province every year.  DED is caused by a fungus that clogs the tree’s water conducting system, which eventually causes the tree to die, usually within one or two seasons. 

Beginning in late June to mid-July, look for:

• Flagging - when the leaves of one or more branches near the top of the tree wilt, curl, turn yellow and then brown; remaining on the tree.
• Staining - infected twig sample will have red streaks through the sapwood.

Several other diseases have similar symptoms so the only way to confirm DED is in the lab.  Please contact the City of Prince Albert's Community Services for further assistance.

The province annually bans the pruning of elm trees from April 1 – August 31. The ban ensures that elm bark beetles, which transmit Dutch Elm Disease (DED), are not attracted to the pruning cuts when these beetles are most active.

Elm removal can occur at any time of the year with approval from the Municipal DED Inspector, however the entire tree must be removed and all waste elm be transported to the nearest approved landfill site in the municipality where the elm was removed.  

Elm stumps and any fallen branches or any wood from a fallen elm tree must be disposed of properly at an approved landfill site. Under no circumstances should elm wood be left lying around or stored for firewood or other purposes. In Prince Albert, the City’s landfill, located north of Prince Albert, is an approved site.  Please note that there will be a fee for commercial hauling of green waste.