Level 5 Arborist Report Brisbane

Every arborist report starts with a site visit from an AQF Level 5 consulting arborist. We inspect the roots, base, trunk and canopy for defects and signs of stress, using a Visual Tree Assessment (VTA), the industry-standard method.

If we suspect decay, we go further, from tapping and probing the tree to advanced testing like resistance drilling or sonic tomography, which show how much sound wood is left. You get the level of investigation your tree actually needs, backed by evidence you can hand to council.

The structural assessment pinpoints the defects that make a tree more likely to fail: included bark unions, cracks, cavities, cankers, root damage, lean, and dead or hanging limbs.

Each one is recorded with its location, its severity and what it means for the tree’s stability. It is the evidence council weighs when you ask to remove a tree on safety grounds, and the detail that heads off an information request.

We rate tree risk using a recognised method, not a guess. We use TRAQ (the ISA Tree Risk Assessment Qualification) and VALID, both of which take specialised training to apply.

They weigh three things: how likely the tree or branch is to fail, how likely it is to hit something if it does, and how serious the damage would be. The result is a documented risk rating that turns “this tree is dangerous” into evidence council can act on.

We assess tree health from the canopy down, checking vigour, dieback and leaf condition. If the tree is declining, we look for the cause, whether that’s pests like borers, termites and psyllids, diseases like Phytophthora root rot and wood-decay fungi, or nutrient deficiencies.

Where the soil may be the problem, we can send samples to a specialist laboratory for soil testing, covering a comprehensive nutrient profile, pH and salinity, as well as soil-borne pathogens and diseases for an accurate diagnosis. That way the report deals with the cause, not just the symptoms, and shows council whether the tree can be saved and what it would take.

Every assessed tree is plotted on aerial imagery of your property using GIS mapping, with the boundaries marked and each tree numbered to match the report. Council can see at a glance which tree is which and where it stands in relation to buildings and boundaries.

If you’re building, we also mark each tree’s tree protection zone under AS 4970. No hand-drawn sketches and no guesswork.

We photograph every tree and annotate the images to point out each defect, sign of decay and key finding, so council sees exactly what our arborist saw. The photos also record the tree’s condition on the day of the inspection, which protects you if the tree, or the decision about it, is questioned later.

Each tree gets a clear recommendation: retain it, prune it or remove it. Every recommendation is backed by the evidence above and tied to the criteria your council assesses against, such as Brisbane’s Natural Assets Local Law 2003. That gives council something it can decide on, rather than an opinion it has to question. The report is ready to lodge with your permit or development application, and delivered 2-3 business days after the inspection.