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Grass, weeds, brush, and tree limbs can obscure or block a driver’s view of stop signs and other traffic control devices, along with cars, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians, wildlife, and livestock.
Clark County has a legal responsibility under a January 2016 Washington Supreme Court decision to cut roadside vegetation so it does not limit or block a driver's view.
Trimming roadside vegetation improves drainage and winter road maintenance, especially during snow and ice.
Our Public Works crews also cut vegetation before summer road preservation projects so construction vehicles can get close to the curb in urban areas and up to the road's edge in rural areas. This schedule can change frequently due to weather, equipment availability and other factors.
We use a variety of techniques and equipment to manage roadside vegetation, including a mower that can cut roadside slopes and a larger brush cutter that can trim branches back several feet, with the debris turned into mulch.
Our Public Works department sends letters and uses door hangers to notify property owners that county road crews will cut roadside vegetation unless the owners want to trim it themselves.
If residents do not trim their vegetation, our county road crews will cut it. There is no charge for this work, but it will not be done to a landscape quality desired by many residents.
For this reason, residents are encouraged to trim their vegetation.
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All low-hanging vegetation needs to be trimmed to provide 14 feet of vertical clearance from the top of the road or curb, if present, and 8 feet of clearance from the full width of the sidewalk if present.
Bushes, shrubs, and other low vegetation also need to be trimmed so they don’t hang over property lines or county roads.
More information
Please call Clark County Public Works at 564.397.2446 between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.
For problems outside those hours, such as a tree or large branch on a county road, call 564.397.2446. That number is forwarded to an after-hours answering service that can dispatch crews.
For life-threatening emergencies, always call 911 immediately.
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