Arborist for NSW Government & Local Councils — GIS-Grade Asset Registers, ISA TRAQ Programmes & BCD Offset Habitat Delivery
State agencies, Hunter Region councils, Aboriginal Land Councils, Crown Land managers and other public-sector asset owners need arboricultural services delivered the way government procurement works: structured deliverables, GIS-format data that integrates with asset management systems, ISA TRAQ documentation for portfolio-wide risk programmes, BAM / BCD offset compliance for capital works, and procurement-grade insurance + accountability. We’ve delivered into NSW state agencies, the full set of Hunter Region LGAs, and First Nations land councils — with the credentialling and the engagement structure to fit.
GIS-grade data · ISA TRAQ programmes · $20M PL / $5M PIGovernment and council arboriculture needs to be portfolio-wide, GIS-integrated, audit-ready and procurement-friendly — not just tree-by-tree
The arboricultural problem state agencies and councils face isn’t a single tree — it’s a portfolio. Hundreds of trees across parks, reserves, street verges, hospital grounds, public housing, school sites, ambulance stations, Crown Land. The portfolio needs to live in your GIS, get inspected on a defensible cycle, generate audit-ready risk ratings, feed your capital works planning, comply with BAM / BCD offsets when development occurs, and integrate with the procurement and reporting frameworks your organisation already runs.
Arboriculture consultancies that work primarily at the single-tree / DA-report level don’t scale to that. We’ve structured our delivery around the way public-sector asset teams actually operate — Trimble R2 + RTX survey-grade positioning, QGIS template stack, multi-format spatial data delivery, ISA TRAQ programme cycles, BAM-compliant habitat delivery, procurement-grade insurance and a single accountable AQF5. The state agencies, councils and land councils we deliver into don’t have to translate our work product into their systems; it arrives in the format their systems expect.
Where state agencies, councils & land councils engage us
- “We need a tree asset register populated into our GIS” — Tree Surveys + GIS: survey-grade tree positions (cm accuracy), attribute schema designed around asset-management workflows, deliverables in GeoPackage / DWG / Shapefile / KMZ / Excel. Drops into ArcGIS, QGIS, asset-management platforms, council GIS systems.
- “We need a defensible whole-portfolio risk programme” — ISA TRAQ-framework Tree Risk Assessment on annual / biannual / multi-year cycles. Per-site or per-asset fixed-fee, with whole-portfolio reporting and asset-register integration.
- “We’ve got a capital works project on a government site” — AIA at DA stage and Project Arborist on-site supervision through construction. Licensed Builder credential and procurement-grade engagement structure.
- “The consent requires habitat replacement for hollow-bearing trees removed” — Habitat Creation with carved hollows + salvaged features + nest boxes. AQF5 specifies AND climbs to install. BAM / BCD offset compliant.
- “We need to coordinate consented removals across multiple sites with a single compliance certificate” — Tree Works Management: contractor sourcing, supervision, compliance-certified close-out. Fixed-fee, single accountable AQF5.
- “Someone illegally removed a tree on council land — we need a defensible valuation for the penalty calculation” — Tree Valuation using the Burnley Method. Methodology cited, calculation shown, court-defensible.
- “We need an expert report for a tree-related civil matter” — Expert Witness reports under UCPR Schedule 7 / Practice Note SC Gen 11. Court-ready, expert duty declaration attached.
Engagement structures we work with comfortably: Period contracts (multi-year supply arrangements), panel pre-qualification, schedule-of-rates engagements, fixed-fee per-deliverable, project-by-project. Send us your standard procurement structure and we’ll structure the proposal accordingly.
The seven services we deliver into government & councils
Tree Surveys + GIS
The asset-register deliverable. Survey-grade positions (Trimble R2 + RTX, cm-level accuracy), attribute schema designed for asset-management workflows, deliverables in the spatial formats your GIS team actually uses. Not PDFs.
Quoted on site / tree count · 1–2 weeks
Tree Surveys + GIS detailsTree Risk Assessments
ISA TRAQ portfolio programmes — annual, biannual or multi-year cycles across hospitals, schools, ambulance stations, public housing, parks, Crown Land. Per-site fixed-fee from $800 + GST. Audit-ready documentation.
From $800 + GST per site · portfolio pricing on scale
TRA detailsAIA + Project Arborist
Capital works arboriculture: AIA at DA stage, Project Arborist on-site through construction. Licensed Builder credential means the recommendations work alongside the construction program, not against it.
AIA from $1,800 + GST · PA quoted on engagement
AIA detailsHabitat Creation
BAM / BCD offset delivery for hollow-bearing tree removal. Carved hollows, salvaged features, nest boxes — AQF5 specifies and climbs to install. Close-out reporting for consent discharge.
From $2,000 + GST single small install
Habitat detailsTree Works Management
Consented removal coordination across multiple sites. Contractor sourcing, supervision, compliance-certified close-out. Single accountable AQF5, single invoice, single paper trail.
Quoted fixed-fee
TWM detailsTree Valuation
Burnley Method valuation for illegal-removal penalty calculation, asset register valuations, capital-works cost-benefit. Methodology cited, calculation shown, council-compliance-team verifiable.
From $1,500 + GST single-tree · $2,800 EW format
Valuation detailsExpert Witness
UCPR Schedule 7 / Practice Note SC Gen 11 compliant expert reports for civil matters — tree disputes, illegal removal compensation, NCAT proceedings, Land & Environment Court. Expert duty declaration, court-ready.
From $3,500 + GST fixed-scope
EW detailsWhy state agencies, councils & land councils pick us
GIS-grade data that drops into your systems
Trimble R2 + RTX survey-grade positioning (cm accuracy), QGIS template stack, multi-format spatial delivery (GeoPackage, DWG, Shapefile, KMZ, GeoJSON, Excel). Tree data arrives in the format your GIS team actually works with — not as a PDF they have to re-key into the system. Genuinely uncommon in NSW consulting arboriculture.
Procurement-grade engagement structure
Fixed-fee scopes, named accountable AQF5, $20M PL / $5M PI insurance cover, compliance certificates, period-contract or panel arrangements. We work the way state procurement and council asset teams work. Hunter Region LGAs and NSW state agencies engage us across this engagement structure routinely.
Single AQF5 across the whole stack
Same AQF5 (Aaron Bath) writes the AIA, supervises the construction, runs the TRA programme, installs the habitat features, signs the close-out and gives evidence in court if a matter goes there. No handovers between assessor and report-writer, no fragmentation across multiple consultants. Reduces audit complexity and accountability gaps.
Multi-site portfolio programme?
For state agencies with portfolios across NSW (NSW Health, Schools Infrastructure, Public Works, Property NSW, Transport for NSW), or LGAs with whole-LGA tree asset programmes, we design rolling multi-site cycles with consolidated reporting and per-portfolio pricing.
Illegal-removal compliance matter?
Tree Valuation using the Burnley Method (or council’s published valuation basis), structured for council compliance teams to verify the calculation directly. Available as a formal Expert Witness report where the matter is heading to Land & Environment Court or NCAT.
Government & council pricing snapshot
| Service | Starting figure | Typical turnaround |
|---|---|---|
| Tree Surveys + GIS (asset register) | Quoted on site / tree count | 1–2 weeks |
| TRA portfolio programme | From $800 + GST per site | 1–2 weeks |
| AIA (capital works DA) | From $1,800 + GST | 2 weeks / 48hr fast-track |
| Project Arborist (capital works supervision) | Fixed-fee on scope, day rate or hourly rate | Mobilises with program |
| Habitat Creation (BCD offset) | From $2,000 + GST single small install | Quoted on scope |
| TWM (consented removals) | Quoted fixed-fee | Scheduled to program |
| Tree Valuation (Burnley Method) | From $1,500 + GST | 1 week |
| Expert Witness (UCPR Schedule 7) | From $3,500 + GST fixed-scope | 2–3 weeks |
All figures + GST. Portfolio / period-contract / panel pricing on programme scope.
Government & council service areas across NSW
Discuss a government / council programme
Send the programme scope, the procurement structure and the system / format requirements — we’ll come back within one business day with a proposal.
Government & council FAQs
What GIS / asset-management systems do you deliver into?
Spatial deliverables in GeoPackage, DWG, Shapefile, KMZ / KML, GeoJSON, CSV / Excel and PDF map outputs. Trees positioned to cm-level accuracy using Trimble R2 + RTX. Data drops directly into ArcGIS, QGIS, council GIS systems, asset-management platforms (Assetic, Pulse etc.), CAD environments. If your team has a specific schema or format requirement, we’ll match it at scoping rather than asking you to translate.
Do you work to a schedule of rates or period contract?
Yes — routinely. We can structure engagements as schedule-of-rates against a defined activity catalogue, period contracts for ongoing programmes, panel pre-qualifications, fixed-fee per-deliverable, or project-by-project quotes. Send us your standard procurement structure and we’ll structure the proposal accordingly.
Are you registered for NSW Government work?
We hold $20M PL and $5M PI insurance, AQF Level 5 Consulting Arborist credential (the standard for consulting arboriculture in NSW), ISA TRAQ certification, and NSW Fair Trading Builder licensing. We’re set up to register on agency-specific panels where the procurement structure requires it — contact us with the specific panel requirement.
How do you handle multi-site / portfolio programmes?
Most multi-site programmes are scoped at the portfolio level rather than per-site. Per-tree or per-site rates drop with scale. Reporting consolidates across the portfolio with cross-site summary, while individual-site documentation remains audit-ready. For state agencies with NSW-wide portfolios, we can deliver in regional waves to manage cash-flow and operational timing.
Can you handle BAM / BCD offset compliance for capital works?
Yes. The Habitat Creation service delivers carved hollows, salvaged habitat features and nest boxes to satisfy BCD-administered offset requirements where capital works require removal of hollow-bearing trees. AQF5 specifies AND climbs to install. Close-out reports formatted for the consent authority. We typically work alongside the project ecologist if one is engaged.
What about tree work on Aboriginal Land Council land?
We’ve delivered for Awabakal Local Aboriginal Land Council and approach this work with appropriate cultural sensitivity, including engagement with Land Council representatives on culturally significant trees, traditional knowledge integration where invited, and protocol observance throughout. Brief us on the specific cultural context at scoping.
Can the same arborist appear in court for our matter if needed?
Yes. Aaron Bath is the named AQF5 across the engagement and is qualified and willing to attend court under cross-examination on any reports we produce. Expert Witness reports issued under UCPR Schedule 7 / Practice Note SC Gen 11 with the expert duty declaration attached.
What standards do you work to?
AS 4970-2025 (Protection of Trees on Development Sites), ISA TRAQ for risk assessment, Burnley Method (Moore 1991, revised) and CTLA / Helliwell for valuations, UCPR Schedule 7 / Practice Note SC Gen 11 for Expert Witness reports, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 / BAM framework for habitat offset work, Arboriculture Australia Minimum Industry Standards for work-practice baselines, WHS legislation for on-site work.
Programme-grade arboriculture for the public sector.
Send through the programme scope, the procurement structure, and the GIS / system requirements. We’ll come back within one business day with a structured proposal.
1300 859 510 Discuss my programme Mobile: 0434 523 566