Arborist reports · Brisbane and South East Queensland
The arborist report your approval actually asked for.
Councils, certifiers and development approvals each name a specific document. Adam works out which one applies to your site, then writes it against the current Standard.
0415 105 592Call 0415 105 592or send the details across
Send the address
A property address is often enough for Adam to check whether a report is needed at all.
What it is
One name on the document, and it matters
An arborist report is a written assessment prepared for a specific purpose. The purpose sets the report type, and a report written for one purpose does not automatically satisfy another.
Most people arrive having been told they need "an arborist report". Almost always something more specific was meant — a condition on a development approval, a council permit, or a certifier asking for evidence a retained tree can survive what is proposed.
The first job is reading what was actually asked for. That is usually a five-minute conversation and a look at the property, and it is often the difference between one report and two.
- Preliminary Arboricultural ReportDesign and planning stage, while the layout can still change.
- Arboricultural Impact AssessmentThe impact of a proposed development on the trees. What most approvals name.
- Tree Assessment ReportCondition, health, structure and risk for a decision about a tree.
- Tree Management PlanHow identified trees are to be managed over time.
- Tree Protection Plan & SpecificationsThe protection measures, drawn and specified for construction.
- Completion Report or Declaration of ComplianceAfter approved works, where a permit or condition requires it.
How it runs
Four steps, and the first one is free
Most reports follow the same path, and where a desktop check answers the question it stops at step one.
- 01
Send the address and what you have been asked for
A property address is often enough for Adam to check whether the vegetation is protected and what the council instrument is. If a report is not required, he will say so.
- 02
Site inspection and measurement
Trunk diameter at 1.4 metres, the root buttress, condition, structure and the relationship between the trees and what is proposed. Measurements are recorded on site, not estimated afterwards.
- 03
The report, named to the condition
Prepared against AS 4970:2025 where development is involved, and titled to match what the approval, permit or certifier actually named. Terminology is not substituted for convenience.
- 04
Follow-up where it is needed
Council queries, a request for further information, or a completion inspection once approved works are done. Where an application can be lodged on your behalf, Adam can lodge it.
Report types
Go straight to the one that applies
Seven pages under this one, each written for a specific situation.
Which report do you need?
Start here if the condition or certifier was not specific.
Read more
Arborist reports for council
Permits, protected vegetation and council conditions.
Read more
For development applications
What a DA needs, and when it needs it.
Read more
For tree removal applications
Where removal is proposed and evidence is required.
Read more
Tree assessment report
Condition, health, structure and risk on a single tree or a set.
Read more
AQF Level 5 arborist reports
What the qualification means and when approvals name it.
Read more
What drives the cost
The variables — site, tree count, report type and turnaround.
Read more
Common questions
Before you commission one
Read the exact wording of the condition, permit or request. It usually names a document type — an Arboricultural Impact Assessment, a Tree Management Plan, a completion certification. If it does not, send Adam the wording and the property address and he will tell you which applies before any work starts.
Not always. Some protected vegetation questions can be answered from the address and council mapping alone. Where a report is required, an inspection is needed because the measurements have to be taken on site rather than estimated.
No. A Preliminary Arboricultural Report sits at the design and planning stage, while the layout can still change. An Arboricultural Impact Assessment addresses the impact of a proposed development on the trees. AS 4970:2025 treats them as separate documents and they are not interchangeable.
AS 4970:2025, the current edition. It supersedes the 2009 edition for tree protection on development sites and introduces terminology including the Preliminary Arboricultural Report and the Notional Root Zone. Older approvals and council documents still reference 2009, which remains relevant for reading them.
Where the application type allows it, yes. Adam can prepare the supporting arboricultural material and submit on your behalf. Which applications those are depends on the council and the instrument the vegetation is protected under.
Brisbane is the core market, with the service area running north to about Noosa, south to about Helensvale and west to about Ipswich. Adam advises on vegetation approvals across seven South East Queensland councils. Travel further afield is considered for suitable projects.
Contact
Send Adam the address and he will take it from there
For many protected vegetation questions, the property address is enough to start checking. Call, or send the details below.