Do you need a permit to clear land in Tangipahoa Parish?
Often, yes. Tangipahoa Parish requires a land clearing permit for any parcel of 5 acres or more. Any major subdivision needs the permit, and so does any special use residential commercial development.
The rule is Sec. 36-111(b) of the parish code, and it leaves out a single home with a construction permit. Commercial timber work with a logging permit, farming and normal maintenance or pruning are left out too. For land clearing in Natalbany, an unincorporated community, these parish rules apply directly. Inside Hammond, Ponchatoula or another city, town or village, check with that local government.
Which land needs a clearing permit in Tangipahoa Parish?
The table sorts common projects by the code’s own wording. It covers land outside city, town and village limits.
| What the land is being cleared for | Parish land clearing permit |
|---|---|
| Any parcel of 5 acres or more | Required |
| Any major subdivision | Required, after final planning commission approval |
| Any special use residential commercial development | Required, after final planning commission approval |
| A parcel of 20 acres or more | Required, with a wetland JD approved by the Corps |
| A single home with a construction permit | Excluded |
| Commercial forestry or timber work with a logging permit | Excluded |
| Farming operations, as the state agriculture department defines them | Excluded |
| Normal maintenance or pruning | Excluded |
Excluded means this parish permit does not apply. Building, floodplain, driveway and state stormwater rules can still apply. Confirm your own parcel with the parish Permit Office before work starts.
What does Tangipahoa Parish leave out of the clearing permit?
Each exclusion comes with a condition. A single home is excluded when it has a construction permit. Commercial timber work is excluded when it has a logging permit. The Permit Office has a separate logging application for that work.
The order matters for a home site. The application’s office checklist has a line for “Single Family with NO Building Permit.” That is the case of a home site cleared before the building permit exists. If you plan to clear first, ask the Permit Office how it will treat your parcel.
Limited removal of vegetation, only to gather information for a topographical survey, is not a violation. That holds as long as no grubbing is done, which means no roots are pulled.
Does the Tangipahoa Parish rule apply inside Hammond or Ponchatoula?
Hammond and Ponchatoula are cities. Amite City, Independence, Kentwood and Roseland are towns, and Tangipahoa and Tickfaw are villages. Inside any of those limits, ask that local government what applies before clearing.
Natalbany is unincorporated, so the parish rules apply there directly. It is the only census designated place listed for the parish, with about 2,500 people.
Our home base, Covington, is in St. Tammany Parish, which has its own land clearing rules. For land there, see our guide to the St. Tammany Parish land clearing permit.
What changes on 20 acres or more in Tangipahoa Parish?
A parcel of 20 acres or more needs a wetland jurisdictional determination, or JD, with the application. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approves the JD.
Wetlands found on the site are marked in the field, and no clearing happens inside them. Later work leaves them alone until the parish approves the site plan and any proposed wetland changes. Any change must be permitted by the Corps, and by the state department of natural resources where that applies.
W2 does no surveying or wetland delineation. A licensed surveyor or wetland consultant marks those lines, and clearing stops there.
What if Tangipahoa Parish land may become a subdivision?
Subdivision plans change the order of steps. For a major subdivision or special use residential commercial development, the permit comes only after final planning commission approval.
If clearing or logging removes any part of a parcel’s 25 foot vegetative perimeter buffer, a wait starts. The parcel cannot be submitted for major subdivision or special use residential commercial approval for 24 months after clearing ends. The wait also ends once the buffer is restored. If you may sell lots or develop later, plan the edge before any clearing starts.
What goes into a Tangipahoa Parish land clearing application?
The application fee is $100, and an approval is valid for 1 year from its issue date. The form asks for the type of activity: excavation, clearing, fill, grading or drainage improvements. Drainage improvements cover culvert work and water course alterations.
The form has signature lines for the contractor and the property owner. You sign as the property owner, and we work through it with you. The parish Permit Office has offices in Hammond and Amite.
How do state stormwater rules tie in to Tangipahoa Parish clearing?
The parish code ties its clearing permit to the state Department of Environmental Quality’s SWPPP rules. SWPPP stands for storm water pollution prevention plan. The parish building permit checklist also lists a DEQ storm water permit when you build in a subdivision.
Both DEQ construction general permits list clearing, grading and excavation as construction activities. The small permit covers work that disturbs 1 acre to under 5 acres of land. The large permit covers 5 acres or more. Smaller pieces count when they are part of a larger common plan of development or sale.
The state counts the acres your work disturbs, while the parish trigger is the size of the parcel. Clearing land solely for agriculture is not a regulated activity under these permits.
Under the small permit, the SWPPP must be finished before construction starts. No notice of intent and no DEQ fee are required. The large permit takes a SWPPP, a notice of intent and an annual fee. Check the current permits with DEQ for your site.
What other Tangipahoa Parish permits can a clearing job touch?
The parish Permit Office requires a building permit before any structure is built. As part of that, it does a flood determination on the property. Once the land is clear, we can build the compacted house pad. A licensed engineer or surveyor handles any design or elevation work.
The parish says all development in Tangipahoa Parish must get permits, and development in the floodplain without them is illegal. Flood maps and flood zone determinations come from the parish Planning Department.
The Permit Office also issues driveway and culvert permits. Its form covers a new driveway or culvert, a replacement or subsurface drainage, for homes or businesses. The form includes a flood determination. We do culvert installation and work through that permit with you.
Keep brush and logs out of ditches and creeks. The parish says it is illegal to dump any type of debris into a stream, river or drainage channel. Residents are to keep drainage channels on their property free of debris, foliage and other obstructions. Forestry mulching grinds brush and small trees into a mulch layer right where they stand.
When do you call 811 before clearing in Tangipahoa Parish?
Before any stump grinding or digging, place a locate request with Louisiana 811. State law calls for the request at least 2 full business days before the work begins. The service is free to anyone who disturbs the soil, and requests go in online or by calling 811.
FAQ
Do I need a permit to clear land in Tangipahoa Parish?
Yes, for any parcel of 5 acres or more, any major subdivision and any special use residential commercial development. That is the parish rule outside city, town and village limits. A single home with a construction permit is excluded. So are farming, commercial forestry or timber work with a logging permit, and normal maintenance or pruning.
How much is a land clearing permit in Tangipahoa Parish?
The parish application fee is $100, and an approval is valid for 1 year from its issue date. The form has a line for the property owner’s signature beside the contractor’s. You sign as the property owner, and we work through it with you. Other permits, such as a driveway and culvert permit, can apply to the same job.
Is a single home site exempt from the Tangipahoa Parish land clearing permit?
A single home with a construction permit is excluded from the parish rule, so the order matters. The application’s office checklist also lists a single family home with no building permit. That is the case of a home site cleared before the building permit exists. If you plan to clear first, ask the parish Permit Office how it will treat your parcel.
Does the Tangipahoa Parish clearing rule apply inside Hammond or Ponchatoula?
Inside Hammond or Ponchatoula city limits, check with that city instead of relying on the parish rule. The same goes for the towns of Amite City, Independence, Kentwood and Roseland, and the villages of Tangipahoa and Tickfaw. Natalbany is unincorporated, so the parish rules apply there directly.
What is the 25 foot buffer rule in Tangipahoa Parish?
Clearing or logging any part of a parcel’s 25 foot vegetative perimeter buffer can hold up a later subdivision. The parcel then cannot be submitted for major subdivision or special use residential commercial approval for 24 months. Those months count from the end of the clearing, and the wait also ends once the buffer is restored.
Do I need a state stormwater permit to clear land in Tangipahoa Parish?
You may, under Louisiana DEQ rules, depending on how much land the work disturbs. DEQ’s small construction permit covers 1 acre to under 5 acres disturbed, and its large permit covers 5 or more. Smaller pieces of a larger common plan of development or sale count too. Clearing land solely for agriculture is not a regulated activity under these permits.
What should you do before clearing land in Tangipahoa Parish?
Start with where the land sits: inside a city, town or village, or in the unincorporated parish. Then check the parcel size and the project with the parish Permit Office. If the work will disturb 1 acre or more, read the DEQ stormwater permits too.
W2 Commercial Construction is a Louisiana State Licensed Contractor, LA State Lic# 78829, and fully insured. We bring 20+ years on Northshore ground to land clearing and the site preparation that follows.
We work through the parish permit steps with you. Land clearing is quoted by the job after a site visit, and the estimate is free. Call (985) 966-2584.