§ 130 Trees In Navigable Waters

Harbors and Navigation Code·California

AI SummaryVerified

This law says if you cut down a tree and it lands in a river or other water that people can travel on, you must take it out within 24 hours or you’ll be fined $5 for each tree.

Key Takeaways

•You must remove any tree you cut that ends up in navigable water within 24 hours.
•If you don’t, you pay $5 for each tree left in the water.
•The fine adds up if more than one tree is left.

Example

You cut down a pine tree near a lake, and the trunk falls into the water. You leave it there for two days.

Because you didn’t pull the tree out within one day, the law makes you pay $5 for that tree.

How to Calculate

Penalty = $5 × Number of trees left in the water after 24 hours

Count how many trees you left in the water after the 24‑hour deadline.
Multiply that number by 5 dollars.
The product is the total fine you owe.

You cut down 3 trees and all three stay in the river for more than a day.

Result: $15 total fine

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source

View on CA.gov

§ 130 Trees In Navigable Waters

Every person who cuts or causes to be cut down any tree, so that it falls into any navigable waters, and who does not remove it within twenty-four hours after it falls into the water, is liable to a penalty of five dollars for each tree. (Enacted by Stats. 1937, Ch. 368.)

Last verified: January 11, 2026

Key Terms

cuts navigable waters twenty-four hours penalty of five dollars

References

Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
California Legislature. Harbors and Navigation Code. Section 130.

§ 130 Trees In Navigable Waters

Harbors and Navigation Code·California

AI SummaryVerified

§ 130 Trees In Navigable Waters

This law says if you cut down a tree and it lands in a river or other water that people can travel on, you must take it out within 24 hours or you’ll be fined $5 for each tree.

Key Takeaways

•You must remove any tree you cut that ends up in navigable water within 24 hours.
•If you don’t, you pay $5 for each tree left in the water.
•The fine adds up if more than one tree is left.

Example

You cut down a pine tree near a lake, and the trunk falls into the water. You leave it there for two days.

Because you didn’t pull the tree out within one day, the law makes you pay $5 for that tree.

How to Calculate

Penalty = $5 × Number of trees left in the water after 24 hours

Count how many trees you left in the water after the 24‑hour deadline.
Multiply that number by 5 dollars.
The product is the total fine you owe.

You cut down 3 trees and all three stay in the river for more than a day.

Result: $15 total fine

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source

View on CA.gov

§ 130 Trees In Navigable Waters

Last verified: January 11, 2026

Key Terms

cuts navigable waters twenty-four hours penalty of five dollars

References

Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
California Legislature. Harbors and Navigation Code. Section 130.

Key Takeaways

Example

How to Calculate

Key Terms

Related Statutes

References

Key Takeaways

Example

How to Calculate

Key Terms

Related Statutes

References