WESTECH was incorporated in 1977. WESTECH's philosophy has been to provide high quality service to its clients. To achieve this goal WESTECH has specialized in a business approach that relies on a small staff of full-time key employees, supplemented by associates and subcontractors. The advantages of this system include low overhead costs and quick response time.
As a prime contractor WESTECH has successfully organized professional teams to conduct large-scale, multidisciplinary projects, yet has retained the ability to subcontract single disciplines to other firms as needed.
STAFF
WESTECH staff members have many years of experience and professional qualifications in multiple environmental sciences and project management
Patrick Farmer - Project Manager/Director of Wildlife and Fisheries Biology.
Mr. Farmer manages projects; directs and implements WESTECH’s wildlife and fisheries studies; prepares Biological Assessments (BA) for federally listed threatened or endangered species; prepares permit applications for mines, pipelines, transmission lines and other industrial facilities; edits technical reports; and contributes to and edits Environmental Impact Statements (EIS). He has 35 years’ professional experience, and has been a principal in WESTECH since 1977. Mr. Farmer graduated from University of North Dakota in 1974, M.S. in Zoology (fisheries), minor in Journalism/Public Relations and University of North Dakota, 1972, B.S. in Fish and Wildlife Management (wildlife option).
L. Dean Culwell - Project Manager/Director of Plant Ecology and Reclamation.
Mr. Culwell has over 30 years expertise in environmental baseline studies, permitting, construction oversight, and monitoring. He has been the interdisciplinary team leader and project manager on dozens of projects throughout the west including those associated with energy development and transmission, coal and hardrock mining, assessment of environmental impacts and mitigation planning. Mr. Culwell attended the University of Montana receiving a B.S. in Forestry in 1970, with graduate studies in Forest and Range Ecology at University of Montana from 1970 to 1972.
Lisa Larsen – Project Manager and Sr. Plant Ecologist/Reclamation Specialist.
Ms. Larsen is a senior ecologist, reclamation and permit specialist and wetland scientist with nearly 30 years experience in project management and administration. Ms. Larsen has coordinated all environmental-related phases of project development, from initial reconnaissance-level surveys through permitting and construction to reclamation and monitoring. Ms. Larsen graduated from Montana State University in 1980 receiving a B.S. Agricultural Land Resources/Range and attended University of Montana undergraduate Studies in Forestry from 1972 to 1974.
John Beaver – Project Manager and Sr. Ecologist/Reclamation Specialist.
Mr. Beaver is a senior ecologist with over 15 years experience in baseline natural resource surveys, project siting and management, NEPA analysis, permitting, construction oversight, and reclamation. Mr. Beaver has managed several projects including: baseline plant, wildlife, and wetland surveys, pipeline reclamation design, wetland restoration, and reclamation monitoring. He has worked throughout the Great Plains, Rocky Mountains, Great Basin, and Midwest. Mr. Beaver has authored and contributed to numerous technical reports, permitting documents, NEPA analyses, and reclamation plans. Mr. Beaver graduated from Grinnell College in 1989 receiving a B.S. in Biology, Environmental Studies and then received a M.S. in Range Science from Montana State University in 1995.
Ken Scow – Project Manager and Sr. Biologist/Botanist.
Mr. Scow is a senior biologist/botanist with over 30 years experience, whose responsibilities include design and implementation of vegetation surveys and terrestrial wildlife studies. He has supervised and contributed to numerous vegetation and wildlife investigations throughout Montana, western North Dakota, northeastern Wyoming, Idaho, South Dakota and Oregon. Mr. Scow is responsible for the reduction, compilation and organization of data incorporated into environmental assessments and baseline studies. He has authored and contributed to vegetation and wildlife literature reviews, technical reports and reclamation plans. Mr. Scow is responsible for report editing and compilation for a variety of disciplines at WESTECH. He graduated from Montana State University in 1975, receiving a B.S. in Zoology and received a M.S. in Zoology from Montana State University in 1982.
Meghan Trainor – Biologist/Weed Specialist.
Ms. Trainor is a biologist/weed specialist with over 8 years experience in natural resources management and planning. Ms. Trainor specializes in invasive plant species management and vegetation issues. Her experience includes writing weed management plans, fire effects monitoring, ecological surveys, plant collection and identification, wetland delineation, environmental surveys for linear projects, and preparation of environmental assessments. Ms. Trainor received a B.S. in Biology from Albertson College of Idaho in 1999 and a M.S. in Land Resources and Environmental Sciences in 2003 from Montana State University.
Corey Baker – Soils Scientist/Reclamation Specialist.
Mr. Baker is a wetland ecologist with over 5 years experience in natural resource surveys, GIS and remote sensing analysis, permitting, and land restoration. Mr. Baker has provided analytical expertise to a variety of hydrology, vegetation, and soils mapping projects, ecological evaluations, and wetland mitigation plans across the Western and Southeastern United States. Mr. Baker graduated from Western Carolina University in 1996 receiving a B.S. in Water Resource Management and in 2003, received a M.S. in Land Resources & Environmental Sciences from Montana State University.
Tyler Hollow – Biologist/Wildlife Specialist.
Mr. Hollow is an environmental scientist with 9 years of experience conducting fish and wildlife field studies and monitoring endangered and threatened species. He specializes in field investigations that provide data for ongoing research on species population health. Mr. Hollow’s work has included monitoring gray wolves, northern Idaho ground squirrels, Canada lynx, and anadromous fish, researching Mountain Lion populations, and surveying timber stands. He graduated from Albertson College of Idaho in 1999 receiving a B.S. in Biology and a Natural Science Teaching Minor.
Dan Culwell - Drafting Manager/Network Administrator.
Mr. Culwell is a drafting manager and network administrator with 13 years of experience providing expertise in drafting, plotting, and GPS services. Mr. Culwell operates a state-of-the-art drafting lab with the latest software that includes, among others, AutoCAD 3D with Raster Design, ARCView, Adobe Acrobat, CorelDRAW, Photo-Paint, and MS Office. He graduated from Montana Tech College of Technology in 1996.