TCIA and ISA Distill Essential Tree Care Services into Three Categories
T&D World reports the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA) and the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) have issued guidance to their members to assist them in determining which types of tree care work should be considered essential.
“TCIA and ISA deem certain aspects of tree care to meet the definition of “essential business” given the fact that the performance of several highly skilled services directly protects the safety of the public and the safe operation of buildings and residences. While not every type of tree care work performed on every property could fit into this category, clearly there are specific aspects of the industry that meet this definition.
To assist members in determining which aspects of their businesses may be considered “essential” under certain federal, state, or local health or business closure orders, TCIA and ISA recommend that each company reviews its existing scheduled and planned work backlogs, and identifies the specific work activities that are directly related to client or public safety. Then separate the safety related work orders from the remainder of the work orders or work. These work orders or this work should be deemed an essential business activity. Any work that is not safety-related should be deemed non-essential and can wait until the pandemic response has subsided.”
TCIA and ISA have distilled essential tree care services into the following three categories:
- Protection of infrastructure
- Maintaining the public safety of our communities
- Protection against the spread of invasive and/or injurious pests
In addition, TCIA has developed a resources page to inform tree care providers of updates and actions regarding the impact of COVID-19 on their businesses.
The full joint statement by TCIA and ISA can be found on the TCIA COVID-19 Tools page.