ENVIRONMENTAL

PERMITTING

As the first step in the permitting process, our team heads into the field to identify and map regulated natural resources including wetlands, streams, and rare plants and wildlife species. We use GPS and tablet technology to efficiently document these resources and easily translate them to the permitting process.

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance

We work with a myriad of federal agencies including the Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Forest Service on their unique NEPA requirements. We navigate these individual agency requirements to deliver the environmental analyses needed to complete categorical exclusions, environmental assessments, and environmental impact statements.

State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) compliance
We prepare Washington State SEPA checklists, assessing environmental impacts to meet state-specific regulatory requirements for a variety of public utility districts, schools, transit districts, state agencies, and private project proponents.

Wetland/water removal/fill permits
We are experts in preparing applications for wetland/water fill permits under Section 404 and Section 10 permits of the Federal Clean Water Act and under Oregon and Washington state regulations, often referred to as Joint Permit Applications (JPAs) and Joint Aquatic Resource Protection Applications (JARPA). 

Endangered Species Act compliance

From northern spotted owl to steelhead, our team has the expertise you need to provide the required documentation for potential impacts to species and their critical habitats listed under the Federal Endangered Species Act. We have prepared biological assessments and biological evaluations for projects ranging from stormwater impacts from road widening projects to new bridge crossings to new boat launches. We are also experts at preparing no-effect documentation when projects will not impact listed species for federal agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Administration and the Federal Highway Administration.

State fish passage and protection approvals (Washington and Oregon)

Clients with projects impacting waters of the state with native fish come to us for our input on minimizing impacts to fish and designing permittable infrastructure, including culverts and bridges for Washington Hydraulic Project Approvals (HPA) and Oregon Fish Passage Plans. 

Shoreline permits (Washington)
Shoreline permitting requires expertise to understand how project-specific impacts are permittable within 200 feet of Washington's designated shorelines. We have experience obtaining shoreline substantial development and conditional use permits and variances throughout the state, on projects ranging from Columbia River boat launches to natural gas maintenance projects. We are your local experts to ensure a smooth shoreline permit process.

Critical Areas (Washington) and Natural Resource Goal 5 (Oregon)
We provide the full suite of field delineation, buffer determination, impact assessment, and mitigation planning services for natural resources that have been deemed locally important in Oregon and Washington.

We also provide Construction Stormwater General Permit, 1200-C, Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) development, environmental compliance monitoring, and wetland mitigation installation and maintenance services, ensuring long-term environmental sustainability and regulatory adherence for all your projects.

We assist with permit compliance by providing detailed reports on water quality, habitat health, and monitoring activities to meet the requirements of agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Washington Department of Ecology, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.