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A Guide To Developing A Community Tree Preservation Ordinance Page 5 of 8 specific in defining terms such as a"significant tree"(including "type" "species" "size'), 'Tree loss"and"construction damage"and/or"grading damage". Sometimes after writing the ordinance, it will be necessary to add>or revise a definition to assist with its readability. Plan Review Process The ordinance should explain the process of how a new/proposed development will be reviewed.This section should walk the prospective developer through the review of the project and detail the information to be submitted with a request for rezoning, platting or permit. Elements that may be required in the review process include an inventory or survey of the existing trees(including species and size)on the site,(also,an accurate footprint of the proposed building on the site should be provided by the developer),an estimate of the proposed tree removals,an explanation of the tree protection techniques to be used such as protective fencing, informationaltwarning signage,proper equipment and material storage areas,and pre-and postconstruction care of the remaining trees. If replanting is required,the developer may also need to submit a landscaping plan for approval. It is critical that the ordinance specify the minimal tree protection methods that would be acceptable.Also,a professional forester,certified arborist or landscape architect familiar with tree preservation issues and techniques should have the authority to review the site and development plans prior to their approval and any construction performed. Preservation The heart of the ordinance should be the preservation of trees in a woodland development.There are many variations to the intent of tree preservation, but the bottom line becomes what you want to preserve,"the forest or the trees"or"what aspects of the forest or the trees that you want to preserve"?This often becomes an issue of just how many trees make up a woodland. Some ordinances will list a percentage of trees lost versus the total trees remaining in the form of a tolerance barometer, i.e.,if more than 35%of the trees are removed by a development, this would be unacceptable and a new plan would have to be submitted for approval. Another approach is to specify that the forest left following development will be similar to the one existing before the project was completed, i.e.,if 15%of the trees on the site were larger than 24 inches,then trees this size should make up 15%of the trees remaining after construction.The intent of this provision is to have a woodland of similar size distribution after development,thereby preserving the character of the woods. Replacement Tree replacement is a simple concept, but to be equitable it can become a very complex procedure. For example,an ordinance may require that the loss of a 30-inch diameter tree must be replaced with the planting of fifteen 2-inch diameter trees. However, not only is it difficult, if not impossible(at times)to find enough suitable planting locations for the http://www.mnstac.org/RFC/preservationordguide.htm 11/14/2007