Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 48(1): January 2022 Association 2015a, 2015b). In Canada, the Province of British Columbia recognizes a Wildlife/Danger Tree Assessor course, where upon completion, “the certi- fied assessor will be competent in [...]: identifying important attributes of wildlife/danger trees; assessing trees for their potential as wildlife habitat; assessing trees for their failure potential; recommending appro- priate safety decisions regarding assessed trees” (Wildlife Dangerous Tree Committee of British Columbia 2019). The interest from arborists around the world in considering wildlife during work is also evident in efforts to create and preserve cavities in trees for cavity-dwelling wildlife, especially in Aus- tralia (Griffiths et al. 2018). As the international dis- course on urban biodiversity and calls for nature-based solutions to urbanization and climate change pro- gresses, we see an imminent need to develop best management practices to mitigate the impacts of tree care operations to wildlife and address the immense research needs to back up such guidelines. Work is ongoing. The new edition of the best manage- ment practices, which underwent a public comment period in April 2021, was developed with the primary goal to be applicable in many regions. The core of the guidelines are being generalized within the original BMP’s risk management framework, with important regionally specific information located in appendices written in collaboration with committees of regional experts. This framework was designed so that other regions, not just in North America but elsewhere in the world, would be able to assemble groups of experts and build their own locally relevant appendix and thus enable practitioners to utilize this BMP. As this work continues, the network of urban tree and wildlife professionals dedicated to navigating the challenges outlined in this article continues to grow. There is a growing appetite for this knowledge, evi- denced in the enthusiasm of attendees of over 60 pre- sentations given cumulatively by the Tree Care for Birds and Other Wildlife program to a total of over 4,000 audience members. Presentation attendees came from diverse groups, such as employees of public and private agencies, tree care companies, local urban forest councils, Audubon and conservation groups, Master Gardeners, and wildlife rehabilitation centers. In 2020, an online workshop series hosted by the Western Chapter ISA trained over 100 arborists to the wildlife trained arborist level laid out in our program. Next steps include not only disseminating the new BMPs to the Western Chapter ISA region, but also 5 reaching out to other regions who could utilize and adapt these BMPs. Yet, the program continues to face constraints related to the lack of research on the impacts of tree care activities on wildlife and the lim- ited funding for these efforts. Nonetheless, we pres- ent the experiences and accomplishments of the Tree Care for Birds and Other Wildlife program as a model and strong case for the advantages of multidisci- plinary groups to develop policy and educational solutions to address complex ecological programs. A CALL TO ACTION We propose the following recommendations to the international arboriculture and urban forestry practi- tioner and research community. Researchers: • Collaborate with biologists and ecologists who are rapidly advancing research on the connec- tion between urban green space and wildlife and connect them with arboriculture and urban forestry research and practitioner communities in order to apply these BMPs in different regions. • Conduct studies on the impacts of tree care practices and operations on urban wildlife. For example, how often do tree crews disturb active nests? Do our recommended practices reduce wildlife injuries? What practices are most effec- tive in creating and preserving wildlife habitat in urban forests? • Connect research questions about urban wildlife with actionable information for the practitioner community. Practitioners: • Call on the American National Standards Insti- tute to explore options for a national standard and on the International Society of Arboricul- ture to explore options for a Best Management Practice. • Engage municipalities and other organizations to create policies and specifications requiring that in-house and contract tree crews follow wildlife best management practices or another program of policy, education, and training. • Establish regional working groups of arborists, urban foresters, wildlife biologists, and wildlife rehabilitators to connect skills and create locally relevant resources, such as a region-specific appendix to the new BMP, about sensitive ©2022 International Society of Arboriculture
January 2022
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