What We Clear
- Building lots — full clearing for new construction, sized to the building envelope so you don't pay to clear (or lose) trees you wanted to keep. Pairs with our site preparation service for a clear-to-pad package.
- Overgrown properties — kudzu, privet, sweetgum thickets, and years of neglect cut back to open, mowable ground. Common with inherited land and newly purchased acreage around Augusta and Aiken.
- Brush and understory clearing — selective clearing that keeps mature hardwoods and pines while removing the tangle underneath, for visibility, access, fire safety, or pasture recovery.
- Fence lines, easements, and access roads — cut and grubbed corridors, ready for fencing or a gravel drive (gravel driveways & culverts).
- Storm damage cleanup — downed timber cut, stacked, and hauled.
Cutting vs. Grubbing — Why Stumps Matter
There are two levels of "cleared," and the difference decides whether you can build:
Cutting takes vegetation down to grade. Fine for visibility, pasture, or fire breaks — but every stump is still in the ground, and in the CSRA, sweetgum and pine stumps left in place mean years of sucker regrowth.
Grubbing removes stumps and root mats out of the ground. This is mandatory anywhere you'll build, pour, or grade: organic material left under a pad rots, voids form, and the ground settles under whatever you put on top. When we clear for construction, we grub the building area completely and probe for roots our red clay likes to hide — clay holds a root mat together long after the tree is gone.
We'll tell you plainly which level your project needs; plenty of jobs are cheaper than people expect because only part of the property needs full grubbing.
Debris: Haul, Grind, or Burn?
Where the debris goes is often a third of the price, so we plan it up front instead of surprising you:
- Hauling — loaded and trucked to disposal. Predictable and clean, priced by volume and haul distance.
- On-site processing — where the property allows, debris can be ground or buried piles avoided entirely by mulching brush in place; mulch stays as ground cover.
- Burning — on rural acreage, burning can be the economical option, but Georgia regulates it: land-clearing burns for residential or commercial development require a permit from the Georgia Forestry Commission (unlike small hand-piled yard-debris burns, which no longer need one), Georgia EPD's land-clearing rules apply and can require an air curtain destructor, and Richmond and Columbia Counties are both under EPD's annual open-burning ban from May 1 through September 30, which prohibits burning land-clearing debris in those months. We handle the authorization question for your parcel honestly — if your lot is in a subdivision in Evans or Martinez, burning is off the table and we'll price the haul instead.
What Land Clearing Costs in Augusta
Traditional clearing across the industry runs roughly $2,000–$6,000 per acre, and CSRA jobs mostly land inside that band. What moves your project within it:
- Density and size of growth — light brush vs. mature timber is the biggest factor
- Grubbing scope — stump removal and root raking cost more than cutting alone
- Debris plan — burning (where legal) is cheapest, hauling costs real trucking money
- Terrain and access — slopes, wet areas near creek bottoms, and tight gates slow production
- Merchantable timber — on larger tracts with real pine, a timber harvest before clearing can offset cost; we'll tell you if your trees are worth a call to a logger first
Small-lot clearing (under an acre) is usually priced as a day-rate job rather than per acre. Either way, you get one written number covering cut, grub, and debris — not a per-acre teaser that grows once the machines are on site.
How a Clearing Project Works
- Site walk. We flag what stays and what goes with you, check access and terrain, and agree on the debris plan.
- Written quote. Firm and itemized: clearing, grubbing, hauling or burning, and any final grading.
- Utility locates and permits. Georgia 811 before grubbing, and we confirm whether your county requires a land disturbance permit for the scope — clearing tied to construction usually does.
- The work. Most residential lots clear in one to three days; larger acreage runs about an acre-plus per day depending on density. We keep saved trees protected and property lines respected.
- Finish. Root-raked, rough-graded where specified, debris gone, site ready for what's next.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to clear land per acre?
Expect roughly $2,000–$6,000 per acre for traditional clearing in the Augusta area, with lightly brushed land at the bottom of the range and dense, timbered, full-grub jobs at the top. Debris handling is the swing factor — burning where legal is cheapest, hauling adds trucking. We walk the property free and quote a single written number for the whole scope.
Can the debris be burned on site?
Sometimes — on rural acreage, burning is often the cheapest debris option, but land-clearing burns tied to development require a Georgia Forestry Commission permit, EPD land-clearing burn rules apply, and Richmond and Columbia Counties sit under EPD's annual May 1–September 30 open-burning ban. County and subdivision rules can prohibit it entirely (lots in Evans or Martinez subdivisions, for example, are haul-only). We sort out what's actually allowed for your parcel and price both options if both are legal.
Do you remove the stumps or just cut the trees?
Both, depending on what the land is for — cutting alone leaves stumps that resprout and can't be built over, so anywhere you'll build, grade, or mow we grub the stumps and root mats out completely. For visibility or pasture clearing where stumps don't matter, cut-only is cheaper and we'll say so.
How long does it take to clear an acre?
Figure one to two days per acre for typical CSRA growth, faster for light brush and slower for dense timber with full grubbing. Weather matters less for clearing than for grading, but hauling out of a soaked red-clay site can pause a job — we schedule honestly rather than tear up your access road proving a point.
Do I need a permit to clear my land?
If the clearing is connected to construction or disturbs enough area, usually yes — Augusta–Richmond County and Columbia County both regulate land-disturbing activity through erosion-control and land disturbance permits, and disturbing an acre or more brings Georgia EPD NPDES stormwater permit coverage with it. Agricultural and small-scale clearing is often exempt, but we confirm your parcel's requirements before starting so an inspector never stops your project.