Assessing amenity value of rural trees

[daveindales]

I understand from my days at college in the 1990's that there was a formula for assessing the 'value' in pounds of urban trees. For example, if they were illegally felled. I'm wondering if this is still the case and if it apples to rural trees as well?

 

Also, are they any recent cases that have gone to court and the formula used to set a trees value.

[sloth]

There are several methods of putting a monetary value on amenity trees, I think the three best known are the CTLA, CAVAT and Helliwell systems. As for court cases, I'm pretty certain there have been a few, but I couldn't say who...

[daveindales]

It's the helliwell system that I remember now.

[Simon Rotheram]

There is a website called Treezilla: treezilla which is interesting to take a look at - but probably not exactly what you are looking for.

[daltontrees]

It's the helliwell system that I remember now.

 

Trouble is, it does not reflect the value of the location , only the tree. So it can be used rurally and urbanly and will produce the same answer whether in city centre or village green.

[daveindales]

So, which system would be best suited to value a group of 3 trees in a rural/agricultural location?

[Chris at eden]

Trouble is, it does not reflect the value of the location , only the tree. So it can be used rurally and urbanly and will produce the same answer whether in city centre or village green.

 

Good point Jules. That's why I would use CAVAT.

[Chris at eden]

So, which system would be best suited to value a group of 3 trees in a rural/agricultural location?

 

CAVAT incorporates a value known as the CTI (community tree index) factor which is based on population per hectare. If more people can see it then its visual amenity value must be higher. For this reason trees in highly populated areas such as London are given higher value.

 

Its also the adopted system of the MTOA and was developed by the LTOA or more precisely Chris Neilan (a London tree officer). I believe they use it in conjunction with the joint mitigation protocol.

 

See link below:

 

CAVAT