Plants and Trees Expert Witnesses: 4

John Booth, the Principal Consultant and Practice Director of Sylvanus Arboricultural Consultants Ltd., is a Chartered Aboricuturalist and Chartered Environmentalist and one of the UK’s most widely qualified Arboricultural Consultants. He has over 25 years experience in both the private and public sectors and has written numerous articles and papers for respected publications including the International Journal of Urban Forestry for which he is also a referee.

Mr. Booth and Sylvanus Ltd. are regularly instructed by both developers and Local Planning Authorities (LPA’s) who are keen to ensure a satisfactory outcome from the planning process, (i.e. an appropriate balance between tree retention and realizing a site's development potential). All such work is carried out in accordance with the guiding principles of British Standard 5837 ‘Trees in Relation to Construction – Recommendations.’

Mr. Booth is a Bond Solon/Cardiff University trained Expert Witness and a member of the Expert Witness Institute. He has many years experience in both courtroom and planning enquiries.

Services Include:

Tree Inspection & Survey - Single Tree, Large Population, Mortgage Lending, Safety and Subsidence Issues

Tree Preservation Orders (TPO's) and Conservation Areas - Detailed Specifications for Tree Work Applications for Trees with Statutory Protection

Trees and Development - Tree Surveys for Submission with Planning Applications
Tree Constraints Plans (TCP’s)
Tree Protection Plans (TPP’s)
Arboricultural Impact Assessments (AIA)
Arboricultural Method Statements (AMS)

John A. Harris, Principal of Landscape Economics, LLC, and President of Earth Advisors, Inc., is a LANDSCAPE ECONOMIST who has worked in the Arboriculture, Forestry, landscape and horticultural fields for over 20 years. Mr. Harris has provided reputable consulting, education and project management services for a wide variety of projects across the United States and internationally, in both temperate and tropical ecosystems.

Areas of Expertise:

Expert Witness for Arboricultural, Landscape, Nursery Values and Conditions

Landscape and Tree Risk Assessments

Landscape and Tree Value Appraisals

Landscape and Tree Damage Appraisals

Storm Damage Assessments and Recovery Plans

Landscape Health and Condition Evaluations

Arboricultural Health and Condition Evaluations

Landscape, Arboricultural, Forestry, Environmental Project Management

Environmental Due Diligence

Environmental Permitting and Mitigation Planning

Environmental Permit Negotiations

Municipal Tree Inventory and Management Plans

GPS/GIS Environmental Mapping Projects

Forest Resources Management Plans

Grounds Maintenance Practices

Arboricultural Practices

Julian Forbes-Laird is a Chartered Arboriculturist, Arboricultural Association Registered Consultant, experienced Expert Witness and Principal Consultant of Forbes-Laird Arboricultural Consultancy Ltd. Mr. Forbes-Laird has a professional practice working throughout the UK and overseas. He covers all aspects of arboriculture, specializing in planning, tree safety and litigation related matters.

Mr. Forbes-Laird is supported by a team of regionally based consultants, giving him national and international reach. He sets the standard for client service, works throughout the UK and abroad, provides commercially realistic strategic advice, prepares sensitive yet practical management plans, works within project design teams to evolve arboriculturally defensible layouts, wins planning appeals, and handles an enormous amount of work under pressing deadlines helping clients' achieve the best outcome. 

Mr. Forbes-Laird is widely recognised as an authority on legal issues pertaining to trees and is an experienced Expert Witness. His expert services include Pre-Action Case Evaluation, TPO Prosecutions, Forensic Accident Investigation and Tree Root Damage to Buildings. Other Services Include:

• Planning for Developers and Local Authorities
• Tree Preservation Orders (TPO's)
• Safety Inspections
• Subsidence
• Expert Witness
• Landscape Design

Siegfried Guggenmoos, B.Sc.(Agr.), P.Ag., Principal of Ecological Solutions, Inc. is a Professional Agrologist, with over 30 years of experience in the electric/gas utility corridor vegetation management business.

Mr. Guggenmoos has designed, implemented and provides assessments of utility vegetation management programs. In evaluating the prudence of vegetation management programs Mr. Guggenmoos has developed methodologies to assess their efficacy by predicting the impact of vegetation management program as practiced, on the future costs and reliability of electric systems.

Areas of Consultation:

• Storm hardening electric transmission and distribution systems to quantitatively manage tree-caused service interruptions
• Advise and develop protocols for assessments of power line tree exposure and mitigation
• Advise on least cost vegetation management by synchronizing economics and ecology
• Advise on impacts of vegetation management program alternatives, modifications
• Provide context for vegetation management, greenhouse gas mitigation measures in a competitive energy market
• Facilitate for management, staff, contractors and stake holders an actionable understanding of ecological principles and their impacts on vegetation management needs and costs
• Provide project management; expert review of programs and proposals
• Develop and advise on quantification, monitoring and verification of biotic greenhouse gas mitigation measures