Risk of injury - target zones

The area around a tree where it may fall down or shed a limb is usefully seen as a target zone. If there is nobody in the target zone there is no risk of injury when the tree falls down.  The more people that are in the target zone the greater the risk of somebody being hit by a falling branch and the risk is made worse if people are asleep in a tent and are not alert to the danger or do not take avoiding action.   Target zones around trees can be classified as follows:

• Low risk target zone – places that are seldom visited.
  
  
• Medium risk target zone – places that are visited from time to time.
  
  
• High risk target zone –  places where people can be expected for most of the time or at some times, e.g., camping areas, assembly areas, footpaths, tracks, roads, car parks, work areas, activity areas and buildings in frequent use. Because the way that premises are used may change, the assignment of target zones should be kept under review and changes should be made if the risks change, e.g., a place that was once seldom visited becomes a designated camping area.