By: Beth Nelson, Rocky Mountain Region Administrative Assistant Coincidental to the 10-year anniversary of the Corps/EPA Compensatory Mitigation Rule, environmental scientists Rachel Harrington and Palmer Hough conducted a study that highlighted the progress in the field of wetlands mitigation. The study, published in The Environmental Law Reporter (2019), also cites potential opportunities for improvement in
By: Kristen Qualls, Southeastern Region Land Stewardship Technician During the spring months, the Westervelt Ecological Services (WES) Southeastern Region Land Stewardship Team conducted and coordinated prescribed burns on a total of 2,028 acres at two WES Mitigation Banks – Chickasawhay Conservation Bank and St. Marks Mitigation Bank. Prescribed fires provide ecological benefits which can help
By: Rebekah Bergkoetter, Western Region Biologist Despite its large size, the California tiger salamander (Ambystoma californiense) is a beautifully elusive species. The adults will spend the majority of their lives underground in burrows, making them quite difficult to observe. Fortunately for amphibian lovers at Westervelt Ecological Services (WES), these salamanders emerge in the late fall
By: Lucy Harrington, Rocky Mountain Region Director Long term protection for compensatory mitigation sites can be complicated but are a necessary component to the Clean Water Act compensatory mitigation program. Some of the biggest threats to the mitigation program are the lack of appropriate site protection instruments and identifying accurate funding amounts for long term
By: Kristen Qualls Land Stewardship Technician, Southeastern Region During the month of February, Westervelt Ecological Services’ (WES) Southeastern Region Land Stewardship Team planted 892 acres of wetlands at two WES mitigation banks: Alabama River and Pensacola Bay. Planting season typically occurs during the winter months for greater tree survival. This is due to dormancy and
Colorado water law is distinctive. As the state’s population steadily increases, competing demands for water application and usage become increasingly apparent. Whether or not shifting water demand can be adequately met with existing water supply has been a subject of active discussion. With the success of ecological restoration being directly influenced by the outcome of
There is never a dull moment for WES’s Travis Hemmen! Travis has been doing double duty with responsibility as Vice President of Business Development at WES and serving as President of our industry association, the Ecological Restoration Business Association (ERBA). ERBA serves as the industry’s voice in Washington by advocating for smart policies and legislation
Recently, the Westervelt team met up with the team from The Fly Rod Chronicles to help viewers make the connection between healthy river systems and the sport that they love. Segments were filmed on different sections of river, including a Westervelt Restoration Project near La Salle, Colorado. These pictures were taken at the confluence of
This Sunday an adult female giant garter snake (Thamnophis gigas; GGS) was captured at Westervelt’s Grasslands Mitigation Bank by permitted biologist and species expert Eric Hansen and his crew. The 273-acre Grasslands Mitigation Bank was established in 2015 and is located next to the Volta Wildlife Area, which supports one of the few known GGS
On April 16, 2018, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decided that the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse (Zapus hudsonius preblei) will remain protected under the Endangered Species Act. The mouse was listed as threatened in 1998. The decision by USFWS is good news for the WES Rocky Mountain Regional office, which has recently proposed the
