Privacy policy.

1. Who we are and what this policy covers

Save Banyule’s Street Trees is a resident-led community campaign. In this policy, “we”, “us” and “the campaign” refer to the campaign and the volunteers authorised to work with information on its behalf.

This policy applies to personal information we receive through this website, the tree-report form, email and other direct correspondence. It does not govern Banyule City Council or the external websites to which we link.

We aim to handle personal information responsibly and in accordance with the good-practice principles reflected in Australia’s Australian Privacy Principles, whether or not every provision of the Privacy Act 1988 applies to the campaign.

2. Information we collect

When you submit a tree report, we collect the information entered in the form:

• your name and email address;
• the suburb, street or location of the tree;
• the type of issue being reported; and
• the observations and other details you choose to provide.

If you contact us by email or another channel, we collect your contact details and the content of your message, including any documents or photographs you send. Our form provider and website host may also process technical information such as an IP address, browser details, timestamps and anti-spam signals.

Please do not send sensitive information or unnecessary personal information about another person. If a photograph includes faces, number plates, a private residence or other identifying details, consider whether those details should be removed before sending it.

3. Why we collect and use information

We use personal information only where reasonably connected with the campaign’s work. This includes:

• receiving, reviewing and verifying reports about street trees;
• contacting you for clarification or responding to your message;
• maintaining a record of tree removals, pruning and trees potentially at risk;
• preparing de-identified maps, summaries, statistics and campaign material;
• supporting correspondence or advocacy with Council, elected representatives, journalists or community organisations;
• administering the website and protecting forms from misuse or spam; and
• meeting legal obligations or responding to a lawful request.

If you do not provide the information marked as required in the tree-report form, we may be unable to verify or follow up the report. You can browse the website without identifying yourself.

4. What we publish and who we share information with

Authorised campaign volunteers may access personal information where they need it to review reports, respond to correspondence or conduct campaign work. We ask volunteers to keep personal information confidential and use it only for those purposes.

We may publish or share de-identified information about a tree, its general location, the reported works and community observations. We will not publicly identify you or publish your email address, telephone number or other contact details without your permission.

Where advocacy requires us to send information to Council, a journalist or another organisation, we will remove personal contact details unless:

• you have agreed to be identified;
• identification is necessary and you would reasonably expect it; or
• disclosure is required or authorised by law.

We do not sell, rent or exchange personal information.

5. Service providers and overseas storage

The tree-report form is processed by Formspree. When you submit the form, the information is sent to Formspree and made available to the campaign. Formspree states that its services are hosted using Amazon Web Services in the United States. Its handling of information is also governed by its Privacy Policy and security information.

Our website-hosting and email providers may also process technical or correspondence data on infrastructure outside Australia. Providers can change their infrastructure and subprocessors, so we cannot guarantee that information remains only in Australia.

By submitting the tree-report form, you acknowledge that the information will be processed overseas, including in the United States, and may be stored there.

6. Cookies and technical information

The campaign does not currently use advertising cookies, behavioural tracking or website analytics. Our hosting provider may keep ordinary server logs needed to deliver and secure the site. Formspree may process technical information when you submit a form for delivery, security and spam prevention.

Links to external websites are governed by those websites’ own privacy practices. Following an external link may allow that website to collect technical information about your visit.

7. Security and retention

We take reasonable steps suited to a volunteer campaign to protect personal information. These include limiting access to authorised volunteers, using reputable service providers and avoiding unnecessary publication of identifying details.

No internet transmission or storage system is completely secure. If we become aware of a data incident, we will investigate it, limit further exposure and notify affected people or regulators where appropriate or legally required.

We retain identifiable information only for as long as it is reasonably needed for the purposes described in this policy, including verifying reports and maintaining the campaign record. We periodically review held information and delete or de-identify material that is no longer required, subject to provider backup and retention processes and any legal obligation to keep it.

8. Your choices, access and correction

You may ask us to:

• tell you whether we hold personal information about you;
• provide access to that information;
• correct information that is inaccurate or out of date;
• withdraw permission for an optional use; or
• delete or de-identify information where it is no longer needed.

Email get-involved@save-our-trees.com with “Privacy request” in the subject line and enough information for us to identify the relevant record. We may need to confirm your identity before providing, changing or deleting personal information.

We will respond within a reasonable time. In some cases, we may need to retain information or decline part of a request for legal, security or evidentiary reasons. If that happens, we will explain why where reasonably possible.

9. Privacy questions or complaints

If you believe we have mishandled personal information, email get-involved@save-our-trees.com with “Privacy concern” in the subject line. Please describe what happened and the outcome you are seeking.

We will acknowledge the concern, investigate it and respond within a reasonable time. If the Privacy Act 1988 applies to the matter and you are not satisfied with our response, you may be able to contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when the campaign’s forms, services or information-handling practices change. The current version and effective date will remain published on this page. Material changes will apply from the date shown, not retrospectively unless required by law.