What is Groundwork?
Groundwork is defined under the Act as undertaking any of the following activities within the Tree Protection Zone of a Protected Tree: • contaminating the soil in the protection zone with something that is poisonous to trees; • cutting any of the tree’s roots in the protection zone that have a diameter greater than 50 mm; • excavating to a depth greater than 10 cm over an area 4 m2 or larger; and • raising the soil level by more than 10 cm above the natural soil level over an area 4 m2 or larger. Cultivating the soil for horticultural purposes, such as preparing garden beds for planting or planting trees and shrubs, is not considered as groundwork.
