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King County Washington home

Clearing and Grading - Land use permit process

Clearing and grading are activities associated with developing property for various commercial and residential uses.

Clearing and grading permits regulate clearing and removal of vegetation, excavation, grading and earthwork construction within unincorporated King County. These regulations protect public health, safety and welfare by minimizing stormwater impacts and aquatic and wildlife habitat loss from adverse impacts generated by the removal of vegetation and alteration of landforms. Other protections include water quality from adverse impacts associated with erosion and sedimentation, and critical areas from adverse clearing and grading activities.

A Clearing Permit is required for any removal of trees or vegetation from a critical area or from properties subject to urban clearing standards or clearing restrictions in a special district overlay defined in 21A.38 of the King County Code. Clearing over 7,000 square feet on RA zoned properties or removal of 5,000 board feet of merchantable timber also requires a permit. A separate forest practices permit may also be required.

A Grading Permit is required for any amount of grading around a critical area. Otherwise the threshold for a grading permit is 100 cubic yards or creation of 2,000 square feet of new impervious surface. If more than 500 cubic yards is to be disturbed, a SEPA checklist is required. Exemptions to clearing and grading permit requirements are listed in King County Code, Title 16.82.050.

Apply for clearing and grading

  1. Property research

    Check jurisdiction and zoning to determine whether your property is located in unincorporated King County or is located within city limits.

    Find your jurisdiction

  2. Check if you need a pre-application meeting

    Large and complicated activities, such as grading proposals for surface mines (e.g., gravel pits) or large highway or pipeline expansions, may require a pre-application conference.  

    Use the following forms for a pre-application meeting:

    Pre-application meeting checklist

    Pre-Application Meeting Requests and Waivers

    Pre-Application Waiver Request

  3. Application

    Download the Clearing and Grading Permit Packet and Computer Aided Design (CAD) Templates and Data Resources available below or on our permit materials webpage. 

    Check our online permits page to see if you can submit these forms through MyBuildingPermit

  4. Check the cost and timeline

    Processing is 100 days unless an Environmental Impact Statement is required.

    Check fee schedule

    Check timeline

  5. Inspections

    King County inspects work to ensure code compliance and safety requirements.

    Learn more about scheduling inspections

Clearing and Grading Permits

Clearing Permit Application Checklist

Information (216KB)

Clearing and Grading Permit Information

Information (236KB)

Hazard Tree Removal Information and Application Checklist

Information (233KB)

Residential Site Plan Requirements

Information (221KB)

Residential Drainage Review Requirements

Information (533KB)

Checklist (641KB)

Grading and Reclamation Liability Insurance Requirement

Checklist (208KB)

SEPA Checklist

Information (212KB)

SEPA Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Worksheet Instructions (182KB)

Worksheet (spreadsheet) (211KB)

SEPA Only Submittal Process

Information (176KB)

Site Areas Worksheet

Worksheet (144KB)

Soil Health: Achieving the Post-construction Soil Standard

Information and On-Line Calculator