Environmental Science Associates

?? Putting the “super” in superhighway! We’re pumped to see the Tillamook-Nestucca Salmon SuperHwy project has been named by the White House Council on Environmental Quality as one of 10 transformative fish passage projects for focused attention. Involving a community partnership between Tillamook County, Tillamook Estuaries Partnership, Trout Unlimited, USDA Forest Service, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and many others, the Salmon SuperHwy project is restoring nearly 180 miles of fragmented habitat vital to the regions’ threatened salmon and steelhead populations along six major river systems on Oregon’s North Coast. The project is now over halfway completed—more than 50 fish passage barriers have been removed, and 129 miles have been reconnected! For more than 10 years, ESA has been involved in this immense effort. Helmed by Principal Civil and Water Resources Engineer Hunter White, ESA has completed several constructed fish passage culvert replacement designs at Mapes, Samson, and Green creeks, and designed two projects to be constructed on Mapes and Illingsworth Creek in the coming years. This work involved conducting hydraulic and geomorphic analyses which informed the projects’ fish passage designs to remove undersized and failing pipes, stabilize stream banks, incorporate flood protection, add new connecting bridges, and maintain public road access. And in the nearby Sitka Sedge State Natural Area, the team is currently assisting Salmon SuperHwy partners to design fish passage culvert replacement projects along three creeks which drain into Sand Lake. It’s so exciting to see that this immense collaborative project is being recognized as a model project to reconnect key waterways and recover wild and native fish populations, while also making communities more resilient. You can learn more about this project and others named as transformative projects at: https://lnkd.in/guns3gqQ, and https://lnkd.in/gz9g3bXn #SalmonSuperHwy #SalmonRestoration #FishPassage #HabitatRestoration #CulvertReplacement #Oregon

?? Hawk your calendars! Principal Biologist Jaclyn Catino-Davenport will be speaking at the 2024 Raptor Research Foundation Annual Conference at the Carolina Raptor Center in Charlotte, NC, this October 22 - 27. On Friday, October 25 from 10:30 - 12:00, Jaclyn will present her talk, “Raptor Point Count Study in Public Preserve: Balancing Habitat and Species Conservation and Preserve Management.”? She will discuss a five-year study conducting raptor and avian observations, with an emphasis on golden and bald eagles, to document the abundance of the species within a preserve in northern San Diego County as part of a public agency conservation effort. Find more details below. #Raptors #HabitatConservation #GoldenEagle #BaldEagle #Conservation

ESA is honored to support the San Diego Chapter of AEP with a sponsorship for their Diversity in the Environmental Profession Student Scholarship. Aligned with ESA’s JEDI values, this scholarship is focused on supporting high school juniors and seniors interested in pursuing an education in environmentally related careers, and elevating Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) voices within the industry. As Jasmine Osman, who serves on the AEP San Diego Awards and Scholarship Committee shares, “We are honored to award scholarships to deserving students in San Diego and Imperial Counties. We couldn’t do this without the generosity of companies like ESA.” Thanks to AEP San Diego for providing us with the opportunity to support this vital program. Big congratulations to all the award recipients, we can’t wait to see where your career interests take you! Check out https://lnkd.in/gE2zbYk2 for internship and career opportunities. ?? courtesy Jasmine O./AEP San Diego California Association of Environmental Professionals (AEP) #Scholarship #AssociationOfEnvironmentalProfessionals #EnvironmentalCareers #DiversityAndInclusion

The numbers are in! We’re thrilled to see that ESA has again been named by Engineering News-Record (ENR) as one of the top environmental firms in the country! This year, ESA rose to spot #22 in ENR’s Top 30 All-Environmental Firms list, and spot #103 for Top 200 Environmental Firms. These annual lists consider key firms providing services ranging from environmental management, engineering/design, and water treatment/supply. Congrats to our fellow partners who join us on these lists! Find the rankings here: https://lnkd.in/geu23GSU #ENR #TopEnvironmentalFirm

The Salton Sea is a rapidly changing ecosystem. In just 25 years, more than a third of the terminal lake (which is sustained principally by agricultural runoff) has dried up, leading to severe salinity levels, harmful dust emissions and odors, and a decline in fish and bird populations. As California pursues water conservation measures upstream, the need for environmental solutions to prevent further adverse environmental conditions in the Sea is becoming more urgent. For more than seven years, ESA has been working to address the Salton Sea’s ecological challenges and environmental justice concerns as a principal scientific consultant to the State—developing regional monitoring plans and a project tracking tool as part of the broader Salton Sea Management Plan (SSMP) and supporting local water agencies by examining the potential impacts of proposed water conservation and recycling measures. In our latest blog we detail these large-scale monitoring efforts which are aimed at protecting natural resources and public health: https://lnkd.in/gj7QMZFQ #SaltonSea #WaterManagement #EcologicalMonitoring #DataManagement #SaltonSeaManagementProgram #WaterConservation #CaliforniaWater

Fun in the sun. ?? ESA’ers have been soaking up the sunny weather over the late summer/early fall, hosting lots of fun activities across our offices to bring employee-owners together outside of the workday. Our Portland and Petaluma offices hosted picnics and games, including the annual “Doug’s Cup” disc golf tournament at Crane Creek Regional Park. In Richmond, California, members of the Northern California Biological Resources and Land Management team took a native plant and pub crawl at The Watershed Nursery and a local brewery. And our San Diego office set sail on the waters of the San Diego Bay while the Communications team embarked in Seattle’s Lake Union to take in the scenic views. It’s definitely been time well spent together! #ESACulture #LoveWhereYouWork #GoodTimes

The three essentials of Coho salmon spawning habitat: logs,?? gravel beds, ?? and deep pools of water ??. This week Marin Water , with the support of ESA, led lawmakers, board members, and resource agencies on a tour of recently constructed large wood and riffle structures, as part of the Lagunitas Creek Habitat Enhancement project. ESA led the design, permitting, and environmental compliance of this project to add 270 logs and 10,000 tons of gravel in an ambitious effort to accelerate habitat enhancement of Lagunitas Creek, for the recovery of endangered Central California Coast Coho Salmon. The first phase of the project is currently under construction by Hanford, under the watchful eye of Marin Water (project lead), ESA (design engineer), and Anchor (construction inspector). For more information about the project, please check out: https://lnkd.in/g-_E_BR8 #LagunitasCreek #CohoSalmon #SalmonHabitat #HabitatRestoration

More beach please! Construction to restore back-beach habitat and coastal access at Surfers’ Point in Ventura, California, commences!? The City of Ventura is moving forward with the construction of the long-awaited second phase of the Surfers’ Point Managed Retreat Project, which will start in the coming weeks. Phase 1 of the project was completed in 2011 and is heralded as a major success and example of how managed retreat can be implemented as a multi-objective sea level rise adaptation approach that considers infrastructure, coastal access and recreation, and ecology. Construction of Phase 2 of the project is funded by a $16.2 million grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy, which includes relocating the damaged oceanfront bike path and parking lot, restoring the back-beach by installing a buried cobble berm, and covering it with sand dunes and native plants. The project essentially extends the Phase 1 project to the east by about 1,000 feet and will protect infrastructure against coastal erosion and improve resilience of this critical coastal access point. For over a decade, ESA has worked with the City of Ventura to advance the project in partnership with the working group, which includes the Ventura County Fairgrounds, Surfrider Foundation Ventura County Chapter, BEACON, California State Coastal Conservancy, and others to address sea level rise and erosion at this renowned surf spot and popular recreation site. ESA led the waterside design of the project, including engineering design of the mass grading, cobble and sand fill, and dune grading and restoration, provided permitting support to obtain all regulatory approvals, conducted regular topographic monitoring of the shoreline since 2011 to assess the evolution and response of the Phase 1 implementation. Construction will begin in only a few weeks. We’re so excited to see this important coastal work resume! See more about this project in a video produced by the The Surfrider Foundation: https://lnkd.in/gQnm2PJf and learn about ESA’s contributions to Phase I and II at Surfers' Point Shoreline Management at: https://lnkd.in/g-J5gcWx #SurfersPoint #Ventura #CoastalRestoration #ShorelineAdaptation #CoastalManagement #SeaLevelRise #Engineering

So great seeing all of our friends at the APA California Conference in Riverside earlier. Thanks to all who attended our sessions and joined us for a lively tequila tasting event! It was wonderful connecting with fellow planning professionals and sharing insights and collaborative strategies centered around urban and regional planning throughout the state. We’ll see you next year! #APACalifornia #UrbanPlanning #EnvironmentalPlanning #Riverside

?? Let the water flow! Last week, the Soquel Creek Water District hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for its Pure Water Soquel advanced water purification facility. The new facility will take in more than a million gallons of water per day from the nearby wastewater treatment plant using a five-step purification process to replenish the district’s groundwater basin—the District’s sole source of fresh drinking water for its 40,600 residents. The completion of the $180 million project is a huge milestone for the District, as it will protect a critical freshwater source from overdrafting and sea water intrusion. ESA was thrilled to attend the ceremony and be part of this big moment after assisting on this project over the past eight years! We’re thankful for the opportunity to support the District throughout the project providing environmental review, environmental advisory during design and permitting stages, construction compliance monitoring, and regulatory agency coordination. Congratulations to the Soquel Creek Water District on this tremendous achievement! Read more about the project at: https://lnkd.in/gbwXhTnY #PureWaterSoquel #Groundwater #WaterSupply #SustainableWaterSupply #WaterPurification