There is a direct relationship between the planting of trees, shrubs
and associated vegetation in sufficient number in populated areas and the
health, safety and welfare of communities and the physical and visual qualities
of the environment which towns are authorized to protect. Trees and such vegetation
abate noise, provide welcome shade to people, preserve the balance of oxygen
in the air by removing carbon dioxide and fostering air quality and add color
and verdure to human construction. They also stabilize the soil and control
water pollution by preventing soil erosion and flooding, yield advantageous
microclimatic effects and provide a natural habitat for wildlife. The destructive
and indiscriminate removal of trees and related vegetation causes increased
Town costs for proper drainage control, impairs the benefits of occupancy
of existing residential properties and impairs the stability and value of
both improved and unimproved real property in the area of destruction and
adversely affects public health, safety and general welfare. The Town, in
seeking to promote the health, safety and general welfare of its citizens
and in seeking to preserve the quality and character of its environment, finds
that trees, shrubs and associated vegetation are an important natural resource.
The Town recognizes the practical and aesthetic value of trees and wishes
to assure that future generations of Town residents will continue to enjoy
the benefits of living in a community filled with trees.
The Town Superintendent of Highways shall have control of all trees
in Town highways and public places of the Town and shall prosecute complaints
for injury to or unlawful acts concerning public trees. The Town Tree Council
shall develop and administer a comprehensive program promoting the purpose
of this chapter, hereinafter referred to as the "Town Forestry Program."
The Town Tree Council shall develop and present an annual written Town
Forestry Plan to the Town Board. Upon its acceptance and approval by the Town
Board, the plan shall constitute the official Town Forestry Plan for the Town
of Niskayuna and shall be administered by the Town Council. The Town Forestry
Plan shall define the annual goals and objectives of the Town Forestry Program
and shall include a current statement of Arboricultural Specifications and
Standards of Practice and a current Master Tree List. Nothing contained in
the Town Forestry Program or the Arboricultural Specifications and Standards
of Practice shall abridge the authority of the Superintendent of Highways
as provided for in the New York State Highway Law.
Owners of property adjoining Town highways may locate and plant trees
in the tree lawn at their own expense, with the approval of the Town Superintendent
of Highways and a majority of the members of the Town Board. Approval shall
be granted if the planting proposed is in accordance with the Arboricultural
Specifications and Standards of Practice included in the Town Forestry Plan
and if trees to be planted are selected from the Master Tree List included
in the Town Forestry Plan. The Town Superintendent of Highways shall authorize
approved planting by an order, in writing, and shall certify a map or diagram
showing the location of tree planting. He shall file both with the Town Clerk
within 10 days of issuing the order.
The Town Superintendent of Highways shall see that trees removed from
Town tree lawns and public places of the Town are replanted or replaced in
accordance with the Arboricultural Specifications and Standards of Practice
included in the Town Forestry Plan and that all replacement trees are selected
from the Master Tree List included in the Town Forestry Plan. If conditions
prevent planting at the removal site, a tree removed from the tree lawn may
be replanted or replaced in an attractive manner at an alternative site in
the same or neighboring Town tree lawn; and a tree removed from a public place
may be replanted or replaced in an attractive manner at an alternative site
in the same public place of the Town.
Regarding subdivision plans, site plans, special use permits, average density developments, planned unit developments and waivers granted pursuant to §
201-8, but excluding single-family dwellings, the following shall apply to land developers:
A. The Town Planning Board may require developers to provide
whatever information it deems necessary to review proposed development applications
and address tree preservation. Where the Planning Board finds that unnecessary
hardships may result from strict compliance with this section, it may vary
the requirement so that substantial justice may be done and the public interest
secured, provided that such variation will not have the effect of nullifying
the intent and purpose of this chapter. Variances and waivers from the requirements
of this section shall be granted only on the affirmative vote of a majority
of the full membership of the Board.
B. Developers seeking approval shall undertake no work acting
land or its natural features before submitting to the Town Planning Board
an aerial photograph no more than six years old with an overlay of the proposed
development. Upon receipt of this information, the Planning Board shall refer
the map and overlay to the Town Tree Council for its review and report. The
Town Tree Council shall walk the wooded areas of the site; identify trees
of value by size, species and condition; tag them; and report to the Planning
Board within a timely fashion but in no more than 60 days of submission of
the required materials by the developer. Based on the report and recommendation
of the Tree Council, the Planning Board may require the developer to identify
trees of value by locating them on a survey map at an average density of up
to 10 trees per acre. This information shall be used by the Planning Board
to determine which trees shall be preserved and so designated on approved
development plans.
C. The Town Tree Council shall provide the Planning Board
and the Town Enforcement Officer with an appraisal of the value of trees to
be preserved. Said value shall be determined in accordance with the latest
revision of A Guide to the Professional Evaluation of Landscape Trees, Specimen
Shrubs, and Evergreens, published by the International Society of Arboriculture.
D. The developer shall mark trees to be preserved with flagging
and safeguard them by such high visibility barriers or other protective measures
as shall effectively prevent injury to the tree and its root system during
construction, due to such causes as soil compaction, grade change, root severance,
drainage change, soil chemistry change and trunk and limb impact change.
E. The developer shall provide, at his/her cost, that trees to be preserved are inspected for tree condition and tree protection adequacy at four stages, as applicable, in the course of development: prior to site disturbance, prior to subdivision plat plan final approval, prior to the issuance of a building permit and prior to certificate of occupancy issuance. The inspection shall be conducted by a member of the American Society of Consulting Arborists or by a qualified professional trained and experienced in tree preservation as approved by the Tree Council. The inspector shall provide directly to the Town Enforcement Officer a copy of the inspection report. The report shall contain such information as determined by the Tree Council as sufficient to evaluate the condition of trees designated for preservation and shall be certified as true and accurate by the inspector. No appropriation or authorization for action shall occur until the Town Enforcement Officer certifies that the inspection report is satisfactory or that the recovery of value terms outlined in Subsection
F are met.
F. Prior to continued development or the issuance of a certificate
of occupancy, the developer shall provide to the Town moneys equal to the
value of any tree designated for preservation that is removed or injured or
that died as a result of construction.
G. If the Enforcement Officer finds that there has been
a violation of this section, he shall notify the developer and give him up
to three days to correct the violation. In addition to any other penalties
set forth herein, failure to correct the violation in the designated time
period shall result in the revocation of any outstanding permits or approvals
associated with the development.
To protect the public, any person who plants, maintains or removes trees
as a business on any area of land in the Town shall be properly bonded and
insured and shall comply with state and local liability insurance requirements,
worker's compensation and safety codes. No person who plants, maintains
or removes trees as a business shall work on any tree on any area of land
in the Town without first applying for and obtaining an annually renewable
registration certificate from the Town available through the office of the
Town Clerk.