How tree removal works in Kingston
Kingborough still works from the Kingborough Interim Planning Scheme 2015, while the City of Hobart has moved to the Tasmanian Planning Scheme. To find out where your tree stands, send council its clearing and tree removal request. It covers removal and modifying, which council says includes pruning and topping. The landowner fills it in, or signs a consent form, and adds a sketch plan that shows the tree.
If safety is the reason, council may ask for an assessment from a suitably qualified arborist, and a 'not acceptable' result from a quantitative risk method such as VALID or QTRA may be needed. Work tied to a future development goes through the development process instead of this form. The Tasmanian permits page covers the state picture.
Tree removal in Kingston: what's local
Blue gums at the beach
Kingston Beach Reserve holds 19 blue gums and other species on Kingborough's significant tree list, which runs to 668 trees in all. Anyone wanting to cut, remove or alter a listed tree must contact council first, as a permit may be required.
A pine at the memorial
An Aleppo pine at the Kingston War Memorial, on the corner of Freeman Street and Channel Highway, is listed too, as is a public blue gum on Kingston View Drive.
Dry forest and swift parrots
Council's emergency plan describes open dry forest and grassland across the north and east of the municipality, and names blue gum dry forest and woodland as important habitat for the threatened swift parrot. Worth knowing before planning to take out a big old gum.
Browns River
Browns River meets the Derwent at Kingston Beach, and high tides can hold floodwater in the river for longer. After heavy rain, waterlogged banks are worth watching for trees starting to lean.
Fire season
Against bushfire, the plan lists annual fuel reduction in autumn and winter and enforcement of abatement notices. If clearing for fire, council may want a Bushfire Hazard Management Plan by a bushfire practitioner with Tasmania Fire Service accreditation.
Storm damage and fallen trees in Kingston
Call 000 if anyone is in danger and the Tasmania SES for storm damage to your home. Stay clear of fallen trees and power lines, and ring TasNetworks for anything touching the wires. Photograph the damage for your insurer as soon as it's safe.
Neighbours' trees in Kingston
Tasmania has its own neighbour plant law. For branches 2.5 metres or less above the ground that reach at least 50 cm past the boundary, you can give the neighbour a branch removal notice allowing at least 30 days, with at least one written quote. You also keep the right to cut overhanging branches back yourself, and you may return the cuttings but don't have to. Check first that the tree isn't a listed one. The neighbours' trees guide goes further.
Hiring an arborist in Kingston
Ring Kingborough, or send the request form with a sketch plan, before getting quotes. Council's answer tells you whether a Development Application is coming and what report it wants. If the tree's a big blue gum near the house, we'd have an arborist assess it at the same time, so the report and the request go in together.