SERVICES
Services offered by WESTECH include:
PERMITTING, LICENSING, AND PROJECT PLANNING
Project permitting is an integral component WESTECH's services. WESTECH has completed and obtained local, state and federal permits or certificates including Stormwater permits, Discharge permits pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, Right-of-Way Grants, Plans of Development (POD), 310 permits for construction within stream channels, FERC Certificates, Surface Mine Permits, and other permits for over 50 projects in the West.
RECLAMATION AND RESTORATION
A major professional service performed by WESTECH is reclamation and restoration. This includes pre-disturbance reclamation planning for surface or underground mines, transportation corridors, pipelines, drilling sites, logged areas and other disturbed sites such as abandoned mines, including studies to sample soil and water, and plan re-contouring and revegetation. Through its subcontractors, WESTECH can implement these plans on-site, if desired. WESTECH has provided reclamation/construction oversight on several projects in the western United States. Reclamation success monitoring is regularly conducted on mines, pipelines and powerlines.
ROUTING AND SITE SELECTION
WESTECH can determine a location, or measure the acceptability of a location already selected by the client, for the construction/operation or expansion of a facility. These studies often include a "fatal flaw" analysis to consider potentially adverse effects on the environment, as well as engineering, cost and socioeconomic considerations. For projects which require an Environmental Impact Statement, this service incorporates the mandatory development of alternatives to the proposed action.
ENVIRONMENTAL INVENTORIES:
VEGETATION, SOILS, NOXIOUS WEEDS, AND WILDLIFE
Projects can range from brief reconnaissances to complete baseline studies. They can be conducted as discrete single-discipline investigations or as part of a comprehensive multidisciplinary package. Environmental inventories provide a description of the existing environment before project development.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ASSESSMENTS AND NEPA ANALYSIS
This may include environmental inventories, or may be an examination of existing data to determine the potential environmental effects of a proposed project. Such assessments typically discuss probable impacts, unavoidable impacts, and alternatives to the proposed action. Development of reclamation plans may be integrated into these assessments.
CONSERVATION EASEMENT AND SITE ASSESSMENT
Westech personnel have been involved in the inventory of lands under conservation easement for many years. These projects have varied in size and complexity. Inventory and monitoring of easements can be modified to fit the goals of the landowners and agencies.
RESOURCE ENHANCEMENT
WESTECH develops and implements management plans and/or restoration plans for private and public land in the Rocky Mountain west. Management and restoration plans may be developed for a wide variety of resources depending on the needs and goals of the client. Projects Westech has contributed to include: the inventory of forests, riparian areas, grasslands and wetlands of Wyoming and Montana; recommendation of native species for use in restoration efforts; wildlife; cultural features; hydrology; and rare plant surveys.
DRAFTING AND GIS
WESTECH offers a state-of-the-art drafting lab with the latest software that includes, among others, AutoCAD Map 3D with Raster Design, ArcView, Adobe Acrobat, CorelDRAW, Photo-Paint, and MS Office. WESTECH's drafting department has worked on many different proposed and existing projects from pipelines, railroads and coal and hardrock mines to location maps for realtors. Westech has drawn construction details, baseline inventory maps, Waters of The U.S. maps, reclamation maps and more for these projects. Westech uses a Trimble GPS to accurately define the locations or boundaries of natural resources. Drawings can be produced on paper or vellum and/or provided on disk. Westech can provide this technology and expertise to your company on an as-needed basis, eliminating the need for a substantial investment in hardware, software or personnel.