Attachment 1 RACV Arborist Final

                                                                            Consult Arborist

B RIEF
Respond to the request for further advice and information relating to the future management
and care of the retained trees on the site post-completion of the RACV Noosa Eco resort, and
the management of the invasive weed species, specifically the Frangipani Vine.

O N - GOING T REE C ARE AND M ANAGEMENT
Since January 2019, Consult Arborist has worked with the management team at RACV Noosa
undertaking annual Visual Tree Assessments based on risk mitigation and good arboriculture
practices and has provided reports outlining findings and recommendations for works to be
completed with advice for ongoing care. This format of monitoring and assessment is
scheduled to continue and will be expanded to include the project area upon its completion.

Primarily the focus of these assessments has been the environmental corridor which runs
along the resort boundary parallel to Noosa Drive; a corridor approximately 10 metres in width
that was retained as part of the original site development. This environmental corridor is aimed
at providing a safe thoroughfare for local fauna species and provides a natural backdrop and
screen to the resort.

The predominant tree species include a mix of Eucalypts with local understory forest species
and only a few weed species that have been and will continue to be, selectively removed
based on their invasive nature.

Past works have included upper canopy management, rather than removal, for some of the
older Eucalypt species to prolong their safe and useful life within the environmental corridor.
The management of the encroachment onto the adjacent accommodation buildings is kept to
a minimum with direct conflict only resolved through pruning, and total removal is reserved as
a last option. Where suitable, standing trunks are retained for habitat and/or refuge poles.
There are many large trees within a few metres of the resort accommodation that are retained
and monitored to ensure the functionality of the environmental corridor is preserved.

In addition to the existing trees being managed in an environmentally sensitive way, the resort
has planted hundreds of local native trees and understory plant species to embellish the
existing canopy and ensure a viable treescape for the future. Many of these trees and plants
now are filling in gaps and providing lower fauna habitat.

Within the eco-resort site, the larger predominant tree species is the Swamp Mahogany,
Eucalyptus robusta. This particular species of Eucalyptus has a natural habit of retrenchment
and renewal within the upper canopy. This essentially means when the growing conditions are
not favourable the tree will naturally die back from its outer canopy, and when growing
conditions are more favourable the tree will stimulate response growth on its branches. This
natural growth cycle and habit provides many pruning opportunities for a tree that naturally
responds by frequently creating new growth from older branches thus maintaining a tree with
a reduced height and spread compared to other Eucalyptus species which grow large broad
canopies and will exceed 30 metres in height. The aim of any required ongoing management
of these trees will be to selectively undertake pruning works to minimise, not remove, risk
whilst promoting growth and health so the trees can be retained with a natural functionality as
part of the site's broader ecology.




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