Project management and execution of a plan to sample and evaluate the status of resident fish (land locked
kokanee and Dolly Varden) populations at this existing hydroelectric project.
Studies demonstrated that the fish were successfully maintaining pre-project
population levels.
Provided regulatory compliance and environmental permitting assistance for a levee
construction project, intended to provide flood protection for the City of
Seward, Alaska. Evaluated project effects on anadromous fish and wetlands,
prepared and submitted permit applications including Alaska Coastal Zone
Consistency Determination, Department of Fish and Game Fish Habitat Permit and
Army Corp of Engineers 404 Application. Prepared a Draft Environmental
Assessment for use by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the lead
federal agency for this project.
Provided environmental assessment and permitting assistance for the Tyee
transmission-line upgrade, including construction impact analysis, studies of
wetlands, fish streams, forest plant life, and raptor studies. Assisted in
the negotiation of Special Use Permit conditions with U.S. Forest Service,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Alaska Department of Fish and Game. In
addition to conducting rare plant surveys along the transmission line route,
Meridian Environmental staff procured professional services and managed the
contract for a Biological Assessment, required by the Forest Service as a
condition of issuance of the required Special Use Permit.
Managed, with Alyeska Pipeline Company and
the City of Valdez, to develop and implement a new hiking trail that is part
of the Solomon Gulch Hydroelectric Project near Valdez, Alaska.
Implemented a waterfowl-monitoring program as part of the FERC mandated environmental
mitigation plan for a 110 MW hydroelectric project.
For the Kuroshima Oil Spill event of November 1997, that occurred near Dutch
Harbor/Unalaska, Meridian performed a technical review of the proposed salmon
restoration plan, as proposed by the resource agencies acting as the Trustees
for this event. This review included evaluation of both pre- and post-spill
information on the salmon populations in and near the impact area, as well as
an evaluation of the proposed post-spill data collection program as
recommended by the Trustees. Meridian recommended an alternative program,
focusing on immediately protecting the existing salmonid populations from
ongoing over exploitation
and poaching, rather than on extended data collection programs, judged to be
of limited value.
As part of an on-call services subcontract, Meridian Environmental staff are responsible
for preparation of terrestrial resource sections of Environmental Assessments
(EAs) and Biological Assessments (BAs) that evaluate the effects of a variety
of activities, from infrastructure maintenance to development of new projects,
on wetlands, rare plants, and wildlife. Current task include completion of a
BA addressing effects of a hazard tree removal project on bald eagles, spotted
owls, and marbled murrelets along an 18-mile transmission line route; and
evaluation of potential impacts of site development on wetlands and threatened
and endangered plant species.
Meridian provided NEPA expertise and interdisciplinary team leadership to the City of
Port Townsend for the renewal of three Forest Service Special Use Permits.
Coordinated project effects analysis, distributed resource information among
resource specialists, and developed project strategy for negotiating
permitting conditions with Federal agencies. Key project issues included the
evaluation of hydrology, fisheries habitat, and stream temperatures. Provided
guidance to fisheries and water quality biologists regarding the preparation
of a biological assessment and mitigation measures to ensure issuance of a
favorable biological opinion.
Meridian provided forest management expertise to develop an alternative plan for the
harvest of timber on Thorne Island. The conventional logging road and clearcut
harvest arrangement originally planned for the island was modified to
provide greater benefits to recreation and wildlife resources, while
preserving the opportunity to conduct timber harvest. Plan development was
coordinated among a team of logging engineers, biologists, recreation
specialists, NEPA planners, and Forest Service staff to ensure a socially
acceptable and economical harvest plan. Meridian staff led a team of logging
engineers implementing the final layout for the timber sale.
Meridian provided database management expertise to develop a land use permitting and
data management system for the project reservoirs. A custom database
application was developed to maintain an inventory of docks, retaining
structures, and other features allowed within the project boundary, and manage
the permitting process for all reservoir structures. Meridian staff provided
training for a field inventory crew collecting data on over 7,000 structures
along 350 miles of
shoreline. Coordination with reservoir managers provided input to develop a
user friendly interface to the database application and custom application
features for data queries and reporting. A users manual was written
documenting the database design and features. Software installation and
training were provided for the reservoir managers at the project office.
