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My city also has a similar law for trees and I think it is the wrong approach. I think it incentivizes people not to grow trees since you might not be able to take them out later if needed. Instead we should have some sort of property tax discount per large tree or something.

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That's exactly what Hawaii does. You can deduct $3000 from your taxes per exceptional tree. https://taxfoundation.org/blog/exceptional-tree-deduction/

Similarly, if you discover some endangered species on your property, current law encourages you to bulldoze it immediately before anyone else finds out.

Similar if your building has features that might get it designated as historically significant.

Indeed. Best to destroy old buildings and pave over natural ecosystems, just in case. This is the way of perverse incentives.

Oh, and when building new buildings, make them as unremarkable and boring as possible, so they won't become historic in the future. Why take the chance? Indeed, make them ugly so the government might decide to pay you to get rid of them.

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