About the Institute of Australian Consulting Arboriculturists

In 2003 IACA was formed as a national organisation by professional Consulting Arboriculturists. Membership comprising qualified practitioners concentrating on the provision of advice about trees to the public, all levels of government, anyone managing trees, and the building industry. It was founded to support and promote the professional interests and ongoing development of Consulting Arboriculturists in Australia and their specialised services providing objective and unbiased advice to the community for managing urban trees. IACA members do not undertake tree pruning or removal work.

The Institute’s primary aim is to foster practice and research in support of the Consulting Arboriculturist, through professional standards detailed in the IACA Code of Ethics which members agree to be bound by. As well as promoting the role of the Consulting Arborist, IACA’s mission is to maintain the highest standards of practice, promote uniformity within the profession, support the ongoing professional development of members through training, education and networking opportunities, and to address tree management issues, educational and industrial issues which affect the profession.

IACA ART Guidelines

In 2020, the Institute has developed Arboricultural Report Type (ART) Guidelines to guide consulting arboriculturists in their report writing. These guidelines provide a concise description and naming of the types of “Arborist Reports” that are currently used in the arboricultural consulting industry to ensure that those who write, commission, read and assess such reports, understand the purpose and required content of the report. The aim of the guidelines is to outline the minimum acceptable content for each report type to provide more uniformity in reports submitted.

The full set of ART Guidelines will be made available to IACA members. The guide for Arboricultural Impact Assessment reports is available here. Prospective members should refer to this document before submitting reports to IACA, and request the other report type ART Guides from IACA before applying for membership.

IACA STARS & SRIV Methods

IACA has developed these tree assessment tools for use by IACA members and the public. These systems are free to use, but must be cited as detailed within each document. It should be noted that other similar systems exist and not all IACA members use these methodologies.
IACA Significance of a Tree, Assessment Rating System (STARS)
Sustainable Retention Index Value (SRIV)

IACA Constitution

The new Constitution for the Institute of Australian Consulting Arboriculturists has been adopted and registered with Fair Trading NSW. Download a PDF here.

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IACA Supports