Natural Resources
Finding the Perfect Balance
Creating a balanced relationship between necessary infrastructure and the natural environment is at the core of what we do. Whether you need assistance navigating the boundaries of regulated aquatic resources within your project, advice regarding threatened/endangered species or help mitigating flooding and improving water quality, Benesch has a team at the ready.
As a nationally recognized leader in engineering and environmental services, we have a proven record of providing thousands of clients with quality work that balances community needs with environmental stewardship. Working alongside public agencies and their stakeholders and constituents, Benesch develops practical, integrated solutions to improve your community—for today and well into the future. With Benesch as your trusted partner, you can be confident the strategies and solutions you implement will provide benefits for generations to come.
Passionate Experts at Your Service
Our staff of biologists, environmental scientists, geologists, hydrologists, engineers, planners and other professional consultants combine their experience and expertise to help our clients achieve their project goals. They are not only knowledgeable and experienced but are also extremely passionate about their work. Many hold specialized certifications and receive training relating to flood control, aquatic resources management, environmental contamination, ecosystem management, hydraulic modeling, dam and reservoir design, planning, threatened and endangered species, wetlands, sustainability and more.
Safeguarding the Natural Environment
To ensure future generations can enjoy a healthy and vibrant planet, we work to help communities assess, improve and protect their natural resources.
Because of how vital your watershed is to your community’s health and success, it’s important to find a partner that can handle the intricacies involved in mitigating flooding, developing improvements and planning for the future.
We understand how to protect farmland and existing infrastructure; create, sustain, restore and monitor habitats, water quality, streams and wetlands; and use micro- and macro-level flood control strategies to manage the entirety of a watershed. Our team has the expertise to develop plans that follow all requirements laid out in the Title 390 National Watershed Program Manual (NWPM), Title 290 General Manual, Title 180 National Planning Procedures Handbook (NPPH), and Principles, Requirements, and Guidelines (PR&G) for Water and Land Related Resources Implementation Studies.
Using our extensive experience with watershed planning, flood evaluations and natural resources management, Benesch can develop solutions that best support your unique goals.
We’re committed to the health and functionality of your wetlands. Our wetland delineation and mitigation work helps your community maintain critical ecosystems that provide various ecological services, including water filtration, flood regulation, and habitat vital for numerous species.
We regularly assist clients with the planning and design phases of wetland mitigation–from preventing their destruction to identifying and delineating wetlands using GPS technology, GIS, and drone imagery. We also assist with planning to protect or incorporate these resources, evaluating alternatives to avoid impacts and mitigating any unavoidable impacts.
Our team has decades of experience working to protect threatened and endangered (T&E) species and implementing conservation measures to ensure their survival. Benesch is deeply familiar with the regulations that protect T&E species and can conduct habitat surveys that follow documentation and survey protocols required for your project. We are committed to creating projects that solve problems and minimize impacts to habitats.
Navigating the potential environmental impacts of infrastructure projects requires multidisciplinary expertise. Our natural resources experts often work hand in hand with our transportation planning and design staff to identify and solve environmental concerns related to infrastructure projects.
With this combined expertise, we are able to help every step of the way–from conducting environmental impact assessments (EIA) to monitoring mitigation sites.
Preserving Resources for Generations to Come
Protecting natural resources often provides additional benefits for the community. For Omaha, NE, the Glacier Creek Preserve Stream and Wetland Bank serves as an important education and research area. Benesch led the planning, design, permitting and construction management of the project to enhance a portion of the preserve. The project included the restoration of three streams; creation and restoration of 17 acres of wetlands; enhancement of three acres of slope wetlands; and the reconstruction of 57 acres of lowland prairie.
The result significantly improves the natural, educational and research value of the area, along with providing the wetland and stream mitigation banking credits to the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District.
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Blending the Built and Natural Environments
By looking at projects through an environmental lens, we’re often able to identify opportunities to better the environment without sacrificing the original goals.
Rapid growth and increased traffic demands led Kane County, IL, to select Benesch to provide planning, design and corridor construction management for a second crossing over the Fox River. In addition to the five miles of new roadway, eight highway bridges, four pedestrian bridges, multiple trail interconnections, three miles of multi-use path and 10,000 LF of storm sewer, the project triggered the enhancement of the area’s rich, natural resources. Environmental project elements included:
- The creation of a 65-acre Wetland Restoration Site to ensure stormwater quality during construction and protect an environmentally sensitive creek and watershed.
- The restoration of native savannahs by removing broken-down buildings and driveways, clearing through controlled burns, and planting trees, shrubs and perennials.
- The prioritization of threatened species by stopping operations to allow the River Redhorse fish to spawn and the Slippershell mussels to be relocated.
Keeping Your Projects Moving
While navigating the complexities of environmental studies can seem like an endless endeavor, our decades of NEPA and natural resources experience means that we understand how to keep things on schedule.
We are experienced with the full spectrum of NEPA documentation including Environmental Assessments, Environmental Impact Statements and Categorical Exclusion documentation for federally funded projects. This familiarity allows us to work efficiently while ensuring deadlines don’t slip.
NEPA & Regulatory Compliance
