"This tree's not on the survey", is one of the most common things I hear doing tree inventories on development sites. When this happens we approximate the trees location. However, this can cause all kinds of issues further down the line when construction is underway.
The problem is when the tree is being retained, its precise location becomes very important. Civil infrastructure, the future location of a retaining wall, the foundation of a building can quite quickly become a source of conflict if the approximated tree location on the drawing doesn't match whats on the ground.
All trees being retained for the development must be located by a professional land surveyor. We can draw this to the attention of the City's planning / urban forestry department by noting this in our reports.
In addition, whenever possible I meet with the surveying crew onsite ahead of their work to review the rules of the jurisdiction, the limits of the property and the species they are likely to see.
Even a half-metre error in a tree's location can diminish its likelihood of survival when a new driveway, storm drain or other design feature is being built near by.
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