Tag: Science

Assessment and Permitting for the Electrical Power Generating Facility and Associated Linear Corridors

AllenES is performing natural resource management activities including environmental and engineering services regarding the development of a power facility and associated linear corridors. AllenES initially
conducted ecological surveys (wetlands, waters of the US, and endangered/threatened species) along a 42-mile corridor through three Mississippi counties. AllenES was responsible for field characterization, land use identification, vegetation mapping, and ecological resource surveys.

AllenES prepared the Section 404 wetland permit and the 401 water quality certification application and relevant supporting materials for the site and associated linear facilities. As part of the process, a mitigation plan for wetlands and streams was developed and approved by the USACE and a Water Quality Assurance Project Plan was developed and approved by the MDEQ. AllenES implemented the wetland and stream mitigation plan at the power generating facility.

135 Acres of Wetland Restoration and 3,000 linear feet of Stream Restoration for Mitigation

The mitigation construction activities associated with an IGCC power generating project included the restoration of approximately 30 acres of wetlands, 105 acres of riparian buffer, and approximately 3,000 linear feet of
stream channel. Construction activities included land clearing, grubbing, and grading: selective thinning of undesirable canopy species in select areas and supplemental planting with desirable species; removing invasive species and undesirable species in select areas; removing flow impediments to the stream and restoring the natural hydrologic regime to the local watershed; and planting desirable wetland and riparian buffer species.

In addition, a ten (10) year on-going biological monitoring effort continues to ensure performance measures and success criteria necessary to satisfy USACE and MDEQ permitting requirements are achieved through use of appropriate adaptive management of the associated mitigation plan.

Stormwater Management Associated with Restoration of 135 acres of Wetlands and 3,000 Linear Feet of Stream

In addition, our firm also provided erosion and stormwater control and stormwater monitoring and inspection of the project.

Performed extensive field sampling, environmental assessments, data management, graphical presentation, and reporting for a natural gas transmission company engaged in the interstate transmission of natural gas through a series of subsurface pipelines and compressor stations. Detection of PCBs in soils at compressor stations resulted in the initiation of a program to characterize PCBs as well as other hazardous substance list (HSL) compounds at compressor stations in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. The HSL compounds include the specific constituents from the Target Compound List/Target Analyte List (TCL/TAL) identified in the current EPA Contract Laboratory Program. Performed on and off-site characterization work which included soil and groundwater screening for the presence of PCBs and HSLs. Generally, this work involved vertical and horizontal soil and sediment sampling to characterize the extent of soil impact and the installation of several monitoring wells into the uppermost permeable saturated zone and subsequent groundwater monitoring for PCBs and HSL compounds at each of the compressor stations.

The client engaged us as its nation-wide groundwater consultant in 1995. Since that time, our firm has applied various redevelopment and “low-flow” sampling techniques and other innovative and standard investigative techniques to groundwater assessment, groundwater remediation and long-term monitoring at over 35 compressor stations nation-wide. These stations are located in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. Our proposed strategies have reduced the clientʼs initial estimations of cost of its groundwater program by approximately 75 percent. Our firm has also assisted the client with the establishment of nation-wide groundwater strategies and priorities, interactions with state and federal regulatory agencies on groundwater- related issues, and the “risk-based” closure of many of its groundwater sites.