Fixed
Tree at risk of damage
Sent to Bristol City Council less than a minute later. FixMyStreet ref: 5218185.
This tree has grown very tall over the last few years. It is also very close to surrounding houses and vehicles. It is not growing straight with a clear lean to the right (from Little Hayes) and in windy conditions this causes the tree to lean further over surrounding vehicles and closer to the nearby houses. Myself, and other residents, have concerns about damage to the tree, vehicles, surrounding properties, and the public should we experience extreme winds, as is likely. The tree is located at the end of Little Hayes, next to the fence of the field containing the over flow carpark in Vassells Park. The tree is closest to 10 and 11 Little Hayes Bs16 2ld. It is a Silver Birch (the last on the right looking from Little Hayes) and has an obvious lean to the right.
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The silver birch has grown further over the last year and is of particular concern on windy days. It has a good crown so leaf density contributes to the wind action between spring and autumn. Photo was taken today (Oct 27) so only the last autumn leaves are visible. I have also attached a mark up showing the trunk angle, which is estimated at about 15 degrees from vertical when viewed from the house opposite. The next silver along is estimated at about 6 degrees from the vertical and the three at the left are fairly straight. Unfortunately, the leaning tree is closest to the houses and vehicles so will cause significant damage when it falls.
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A citizen has provided a follow-up to the original enquiry.
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This issue is currently under investigation.
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Dear resident, Thank you for bringing your concerns about the birch tree on Little Hayes to my attention. The two enquiries on Fix My Street included concerns about the following: • The height of the tree • The lean of the tree • The potential for the tree to cause damage in high winds • The potential for the tree to fall and cause damage
I visited the site on Tuesday 29th October to assess the birch trees, particularly the one that is leaning. I agree that it is leaning towards the cars parked in the drive of No 10 Little Hayes and that in windy conditions the swaying branches may seem alarming. However, trees are living organisms that adapt to their environment and surroundings. Wood is a very flexible material that allows trees to move with the wind without breaking (although birch trees have very thin twigs that often break off at the ends even during normal winds). When it is windy the movement of the branches take the energy from the wind to dampen the effects on the main scaffold branches, trunk and roots. During high intensity wind events there is a chance of branches breaking but these are most likely to be smaller branches that have a low risk of harm. A tree, like a man-made structure, is ‘designed’ with a considerable margin of strength beyond normal requirements – the safety factor. The ratio between breaking stress and normal stress is around 4.5 derived from studies on stems and root plates. (Mattheck & Breloer (1995) The Body Language of Trees: A handbook for failure analysis. (Research for Amenity Trees 4) HMSO London).
The safety factor depends on the diameter of the trunk and the mechanical properties of the wood cells. Each season the tree creates a woody layer around the whole of the structure, including the roots, but unequally within different parts of the tree. These variations are a result of the availability of nutrients and also by the magnitude and duration of mechanical stress. The tree produces a special kind of ‘reaction wood’ that has the function of withstanding stresses, particularly when the cells are is not vertically orientated, both on the compression side (the underside of the lean) and on the tension side (the uppermost side). This growth response to mechanical stress is known as ‘adaptive growth’. This adaptive growth helps even out the stresses around the whole of the outside of the structure and is known as the ‘axiom of uniform stress’ and applies to other living things and not just trees. (Mattheck & Breloer (1995))
The birch tree is showing signs of this adaptive growth around the trunk which shows as a paler section of new bark as the trunk is expanding with the adaptive development of the reaction wood (see photos 1 and 2).
There is also significant additional root development on the tension side as well as a buttress forming on the compression side (see photo 3).
Although the main stem is leaning, the top of the canopy of the tree is growing upright (see photo 4). This suggests that the tree started leaning early after planting, possibly in response to light competition from surrounding canopies or from early damage during shrub maintenance. The tree has become stable and you can see that the branches in the upper canopy are growing upright showing that the tree has been at this angle for many years. The canopy has adapted to the lean and is full and healthy.
On 4/11/23 I did a full inspection of all the trees along this strip of land. For our tree inspections and risk assessments we use the widely used Quantified Tree Risk Assessment system (QTRA) and you can find information about this at www.qtra.co.uk. The Little Hayes trees are on a 5-year inspection cycle with the exception of the leaning tree and I have increased the inspection cycle of this one to 2 years. I have cleared the vegetation around it so it is more easy to monitor any changes in the lean.
The risk of harm rating for the group of trees is <1/1,000,000 For the leaning tree, the QTRA risk of harm rating is 1:300,000
For comparison with other examples of risks we live with as a society, the below example comes from see Common Sense Risk Management of Trees, OGL 2024 – available at www.ntsgroup.org.uk
I hope that this goes some way to explaining how we manage risk in our tree stock within BCC and I am very sorry that I was unable to explain this to you while I was with you on site.
I am aware that you felt that I was unable to understand your concerns, I can see that my approach was not helpful and came across as rude and I apologise for this.
Your concerns over the maintenance of the shrubs will be passed over to the Parks’ grounds maintenance team. Meanwhile, you have a right in Common Law to prune back any vegetation to the point at which is crosses your land boundary and this is described in more detail in our Tree Management Policies that can be found at www.bristol.gov.uk/treepolicies I have pasted the section about Common Law Right below for ease.
Common Law Right You have a Common Law right to remove a nuisance associated with trees. The following advice is given if you wish to exercise your Common Law right: a) You can only consider removing those parts of the tree from the point where they cross the boundary of your property. You have no legal right to cut or remove any part of a tree that does not overhang your property. b) You are strongly advised to consult an Arboricultural Association Registered tree surgeon (www.trees.org.uk) for guidance on how best to prune back encroaching trees, unless the works are small enough to do with hand secateurs or similar. c) Before you consider doing any works to a tree(s) you should find out if it is protected by a Tree Preservation Order or are within a Conservation Area. If the trees are protected, you will need to gain consent by making an application / give notice to the council. To find out if the tree(s) is protected and for guidance on how to apply for works, please contact: Email: development.management@bristol.gov.uk Telephone: 0117 9223000 Web: https://www.bristol.gov.uk/ tpos d) You are advised to discuss with your neighbour your intention to prune overhanging branches. Legally you do not own the overhanging branches and you should offer these to your neighbour. But in all likelihood, you should consider disposing of the cuttings yourself. If the overhanging branch is from a council owned tree, any cuttings must be disposed of appropriately and not returned to City Council land.
Photos
Photo 1, taken 16/11/23
Photo 3, taken 4/11/23
Photo 16/11/23
Photo 2, taken 4/11/24
Dear resident,
Thank you for bringing your concerns about the birch tree on Little Hayes to my attention.
The two enquiries on Fix My Street included concerns about the following:
• The height of the tree
• The lean of the tree • The potential for the tree to cause damage in high winds • The potential for the tree to fall and cause damage
I visited the site on Tuesday 29th October to assess the birch trees, particularly the one that is leaning. I agree that it is leaning towards the cars parked in the drive of No 10 Little Hayes and that in windy conditions the swaying branches may seem alarming. However, trees are living organisms that adapt to their environment and surroundings. Wood is a very flexible material that allows trees to move with the wind without breaking (although birch trees have very thin twigs that often break off at the ends even during normal winds). When it is windy the movement of the branches take the energy from the wind to dampen the effects on the main scaffold branches, trunk and roots. During high intensity wind events there is a chance of branches breaking but these are most likely to be smaller branches that have a low risk of harm. A tree, like a man-made structure, is ‘designed’ with a considerable margin of strength beyond normal requirements – the safety factor. The ratio between breaking stress and normal stress is around 4.5 derived from studies on stems and root plates. (Mattheck & Breloer (1995) The Body Language of Trees: A handbook for failure analysis. (Research for Amenity Trees 4) HMSO London).
The safety factor depends on the diameter of the trunk and the mechanical properties of the wood cells. Each season the tree creates a woody layer around the whole of the structure, including the roots, but unequally within different parts of the tree. These variations are a result of the availability of nutrients and also by the magnitude and duration of mechanical stress. The tree produces a special kind of ‘reaction wood’ that has the function of withstanding stresses, particularly when the cells are is not vertically orientated, both on the compression side (the underside of the lean) and on the tension side (the uppermost side). This growth response to mechanical stress is known as ‘adaptive growth’. This adaptive growth helps even out the stresses around the whole of the outside of the structure and is known as the ‘axiom of uniform stress’ and applies to other living things and not just trees. (Mattheck & Breloer (1995))
The birch tree is showing signs of this adaptive growth around the trunk which shows as a paler section of new bark as the trunk is expanding with the adaptive development of the reaction wood (see photos 1 and 2).
There is also significant additional root development on the tension side as well as a buttress forming on the compression side (see photo 3).
Although the main stem is leaning, the top of the canopy of the tree is growing upright (see photo 4). This suggests that the tree started leaning early after planting, possibly in response to light competition from surrounding canopies or from early damage during shrub maintenance. The tree has become stable and you can see that the branches in the upper canopy are growing upright showing that the tree has been at this angle for many years. The canopy has adapted to the lean and is full and healthy.
On 4/11/23 I did a full inspection of all the trees along this strip of land. For our tree inspections and risk assessments we use the widely used Quantified Tree Risk Assessment system (QTRA) and you can find information about this at www.qtra.co.uk. The Little Hayes trees are on a 5-year inspection cycle with the exception of the leaning tree and I have increased the inspection cycle of this one to 2 years. I have cleared the vegetation around it so it is more easy to monitor any changes in the lean.
The risk of harm rating for the group of trees is <1/1,000,000 For the leaning tree, the QTRA risk of harm rating is 1:300,000
For comparison with other examples of risks we live with as a society, the below example comes from see Common Sense Risk Management of Trees, OGL 2024 – available at www.ntsgroup.org.uk
I hope that this goes some way to explaining how we manage risk in our tree stock within BCC and I am very sorry that I was unable to explain this to you while I was with you on site.
I am aware that you felt that I was unable to understand your concerns, I can see that my approach was not helpful and came across as rude and I apologise for this.
Your concerns over the maintenance of the shrubs will be passed over to the Parks’ grounds maintenance team. Meanwhile, you have a right in Common Law to prune back any vegetation to the point at which is crosses your land boundary and this is described in more detail in our Tree Management Policies that can be found at www.bristol.gov.uk/treepolicies I have pasted the section about Common Law Right below for ease.
Common Law Right You have a Common Law right to remove a nuisance associated with trees. The following advice is given if you wish to exercise your Common Law right: a) You can only consider removing those parts of the tree from the point where they cross the boundary of your property. You have no legal right to cut or remove any part of a tree that does not overhang your property. b) You are strongly advised to consult an Arboricultural Association Registered tree surgeon (www.trees.org.uk) for guidance on how best to prune back encroaching trees, unless the works are small enough to do with hand secateurs or similar. c) Before you consider doing any works to a tree(s) you should find out if it is protected by a Tree Preservation Order or are within a Conservation Area. If the trees are protected, you will need to gain consent by making an application / give notice to the council. To find out if the tree(s) is protected and for guidance on how to apply for works, please contact: Email: development.management@bristol.gov.uk Telephone: 0117 9223000 Web: https://www.bristol.gov.uk/ tpos d) You are advised to discuss with your neighbour your intention to prune overhanging branches. Legally you do not own the overhanging branches and you should offer these to your neighbour. But in all likelihood, you should consider disposing of the cuttings yourself. If the overhanging branch is from a council owned tree, any cuttings must be disposed of appropriately and not returned to City Council land.
Photos
Photo 1, taken 16/11/23
Photo 3, taken 4/11/23
Photo 16/11/23
Photo 2, taken 4/11/24
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A citizen has provided a follow-up to the original enquiry.
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This issue has been resolved. No further action is required at this time.
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