Tree controls in Boroondara

The dual trigger, which is where applications fail

The local law catches big trees anywhere on the block. Clause 52.37 catches smaller trees, but only within 6 m of the narrowest street frontage or 4.5 m of the rear boundary. A tree can easily fall under one and not the other, and a report that answers only one test will come back.

Worked example. A tree with a 120 cm trunk circumference standing in the middle of a Camberwell block is caught by the local law and not by Clause 52.37. A tree with a 60 cm circumference three metres off the rear fence is caught by Clause 52.37 and not by the local law. Both need a permit. Neither report is interchangeable with the other.

Tree protection during construction

Council publishes what may not happen inside a protection zone, and it is more specific than most: no preparing chemicals including cement products, no storing or dumping materials or waste, no washing down or refuelling plant, no fires. Those are the four that get sites into trouble, and they are the four a site induction should cover.

Asset protection bonds run from a minimum of $3,000 for minor impact and $5,000 for medium impact, with major works assessed on application. Note that the asset protection stream covers footpaths, crossings, kerbs and reserves. Street trees sit in a separate works permit stream, so budgeting for one does not cover the other.