Tree Risk Assessment

Living around trees can offer many benefits to landowners, visitors, and the community. With any tree however, risk is always present and any tree will fail under forces exceeding the strength of its parts. Having a Tree Risk Assessment by an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) “TRAQ” qualified arborist could mean the difference between personal injury or property damage as well as removal or retention of a tree. Our goal is to provide the most comprehensive and current information regarding the condition of your trees and to identify possible mitigation efforts to reduce risk. Using the ISA’s Tree Risk Assessment guidelines for a Qualitative Risk Assessment, Skyline Tree Service can help you identify which level of risk is present and help you understand the level risk tolerance appropriate for you.

Elements found within a written Tree Risk Assessment are as follows:

1. Name and qualifications of tree risk assessor, company name and date of assessment
2. Statement of the assignment scope of work
3. Location or identification of the tree(s) assessed
4. Identification of which level of assessment (limited visual, basic, or advanced) and of the details of the method
5. Description of targets, occupancy rates, likelihood of impacting the target, and potential consequences of failure
6. Documentation of the likelihood of failure (May include: list of tree conditions, structural defects, potential load, response growth observed, and measurements of defects)
7. Discussion and conclusion of the risk assessment
8. Discussion of options and/or recommendations for mitigation
9. Description of residual risk
10. Recommendations for reassessment interval
11. Identification of limitations of the assessment

Aerial assessment using the drone to look for defects within the canopy.

Taking a core sample using an increment borer to check for internal decay.