TREES, PLEASE! Protection Racket
By Tim Clancy, for Let’s Talk Plants! November 2026.
Protection racket: is a criminal extortion scheme where a group or individual forces people, store owners, or companies to pay regular money in exchange for a promise not to harm them or damage their property.
The world of arboriculture also has a protection component. We call it a “Tree Protection Plan”. It is not a forced program foisted on unsuspecting tree owners whether private or public. There is no attempt to extract money to ensure a tree’s continued “safety”.
Tree protection plans are often crafted by a certified arborist. They are designed to protect trees during construction. If a homeowner wants to do an addition and think they may impact a tree they might want a tree protection plan. Most municipalities have a tree protection plan element in place for times when publicly owned trees are in construction zones. Some have requirements for private trees in multi-home developments.
When trees are to be retained in the face of construction there are certain guidelines we like to have contractors follow to ensure the tree’s survival. One of the first things we do is an assessment. We document the current condition of the trees to give us a pre-construction baseline. We may also create a pruning scope of work to be completed pre-construction. We do this so we have a “clean slate” at the start of construction. Of course, sometimes it’s not possible to work on the trees. Either way we document the tree conditions with a written report and several photographs.
The City of Del Mar has detailed requirements for tree protection and preservation in their “Public Tree Policy Manual for the City of Del Mar” dated 02/02/04. The parts of the Manual that directly address tree preservation and protection are Section 5 “Protection of Trees During Construction” and Section 6 “Tree Reports”.
Tree protection starts with what we call a tree protection zone. This is an area radiating out from the tree trunk in which we want any activity to be limited. The bigger the better of course. Currently the tree trunk diameter is where we are informed as to the zone size. It is based on the trunk diameter at 54” above grade. (The typical “dbh” measurement location.) For each inch of diameter we ask for 12’ of protection zone. So for a 10” tree we want a 10’ radius zone around the tree. Following is a short summary of the how we approach tree protection
Pre-Construction Habitat Assessment: A certified arborist or biologist must inspect the project area to map existing tree canopies, identify special-status species, and establish a baseline tree inventory. [1]
Delineation of Tree Protection Zones (TPZ): The critical root zone of all trees marked for preservation must be calculated and clearly outlined. [1]
Physical Barriers: Sturdy, highly visible protective fencing (usually at least 4 feet tall) must be installed around the perimeter of the TPZ before any heavy machinery arrives on site. [1]
Construction Restrictions: No soil compaction, grading, trenching, material storage, or vehicle parking is permitted inside the fenced protection zone to prevent irreversible root and trunk injury. [1, 2]
Our biggest concern is soil compaction. When compacted, water runs off the surface before it has a chance to reach roots.
Those orange construction fences you see around trees are the limits of the zone and are to be kept free of all activity and not used for storage.
