Ecological Services

The Access Environmental Associates, Inc. ecological department consists of experienced professional biologists and ecologists committed to providing innovative and original solutions to today's ecological issues. As with any complex regulatory structure, the success or failure of a given project depends upon the skill of the consultant who interprets the regulations. To this end, our personnel maintain a close working relationship with government regulatory personnel in order to administer scientific evaluations that maximize the client's useable property and minimize related economic impacts. Access Environmental Associates, Inc.'s ecological department comprises experienced biologists and ecologists who are dedicated to finding creative and unique solutions to contemporary ecological problems.

Specific services relating to wetland ecosystems include preliminary ecological and wetland evaluations, jurisdictional wetland delineation, environmental permitting, wetland mitigation design, wetland mitigation banking, and Wetland Rapid Assessment Procedure (WRAP). Additional ecological services include endangered and threatened wildlife species surveys, habitat evaluations, protected species permitting, mitigation design, Incidental Takings Permits (ITP), and Habitat Conservation Plans (HCP). Services specific to Florida include, gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) surveys, gopher tortoise Incidental Takings Permits, and gopher tortoise relocation plans and permits, as well as tasks associated with the flatwoods salamander (Ambystoma cingulatum), eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon corais couperi), bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), woodstork (Mycteria americana), and the Florida scrub jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens coerulescens).

A sample listing of the services Access Environmental Associates, Inc. provides its clients has been listed below:

Preliminary Wetland/ecological assessments
Wetland Boundary Identification/Delineation
National Environmental Protection Act Screenings (NEPA)
State & Federal Permit Preparation and Assistance
Wetland Mitigation Design & Implementation
Mitigation Monitoring
Non-Game and Protected Wildlife Species Surveys
Wildlife Population Surveys
Habitat Conservation Planning/Incidental Takings Permits
Cultural Resources Surveys

WETLAND SERVICES

With the ever increasing control of governmental regulatory agencies, the ability to impact natural resources has become increasingly restricted. Issues such as jurisdictional wetlands and protected wildlife species may impact a landowner's or developer's ability to make full use of a property. Wetland jurisdictional authority on the federal level is regulated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE). The ACOE regulates the placement of dredged or fill material within Waters of the United States, as stipulated in Section 404 of the Clear Water Act (33 USC 1344). Additionally, many states have additional regulatory agencies, such as the State of Florida Water Management Districts that also have wetland or natural resource regulations which must be considered.

Under the Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.), the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Florida Water Management Districts (FWMD) regulate the development of storm water treatment facilities and associated wetland regulations. Because of these regulations and the issues associated with the development of "raw" land in Florida an increasing percentage of the development community is relying on private ecological consultants to assist them through the process. The experienced ecological staff of Access Environmental Associates, Inc. can provide our clients with a myriad of services to resolve issues and facilitate the process.

A wetland is defined as "those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soils. Soils present in wetlands generally are classified as hydric or alluvial, or process characteristics that are associated with reducing soil conditions.

The ACOE as well as the state of Florida have three parameters that they utilize in determining whether or not an area represents jurisdictional wetlands. These include vegetation, soils, and hydrology. The 1987 ACOE Wetland Delineation Manual states that all three of these indicators be present for an area to be deemed jurisdictional. In the mid 1990's the State of Florida passed new legislature that redefined what the FDEP and FWMD would classify as jurisdictional wetlands. Under this "new" definition, the state agencies only require that two of the three wetland indicators be presence, thus expanding the state's definition of a jurisdictional wetland.

Through an extensive senior level quality assurance program, Access Environmental Associates, Inc. is able to insure through sound scientific evaluation, that the jurisdictional wetland delineation tasks are performed in a manner sensitive to the client's project needs.

Proposed development and other activities requiring the placement of dredged or fill material in jurisdictional waters of the U.S., including wetlands, or the adverse modification of such habitats (i.e., pond and reservoir development) typically requires the submittal of a Federal Section 404 permit application to the respective District Engineer of the ACOE prior to project construction. In addition, several states have their own agencies that regulate wetlands and water quality issues. The state and federal permitting process is complex and can become extensive. During the permit review process, various federal and state regulatory agencies provide the ACOE review comments from their respective areas of responsibility, as well as public interest groups.

The federal and state regulatory agencies that ordinarily respond to Section 404 permits and their areas of responsibility are:

Access Environmental Associates, Inc. has conducted extensive research on the new and modified Nationwide Permits (Federal Register on March 9, 2000) and has disseminated this information to various local civil engineering and legal firms through multimedia presentations. This is yet another way in which we can better serve our client's needs. If you are interested in obtaining a copy of the new Nationwide Permits or would like to schedule a presentation please feel free to contact us.

Land development projects occurring in the state of Florida require an Environmental Resource Permit (ERP) for project related water quality issues as well as any project having jurisdictional wetland impacts. The ERP permitting process has three separate classifications, the Noticed General ERP, the Standard General ERP, and the Individual ERP. The ERP necessary for a given development project is dependant upon the nature of the project and the extent of the project related wetland impacts. Access Environmental Associates, Inc. works in close association with civil and design engineers in the drafting and submittal of the ERP applications. Through our personnel's extensive permitting experience, we are able to offer creative and expedient solutions to wetland permitting issues.

Wetland mitigation is defined as: an action or series of actions to offset the adverse impacts that would otherwise cause a regulated activity to fail to meet the criteria set forth in Sections 12.2 through 12.2.8.8 of the Florida Water Management District Applicants Handbook. Mitigation can take the form of wetland creation, restoration, enhancement, and/or preservation. Wetland mitigation is undertaken expressly for the purpose of compensating for unavoidable wetland losses in advance of proposed development. Mitigation plans are designed to replace wetland habitat values and function lost from the proposed development. Also, a monitoring program is often necessary to evaluate the success of the mitigation plan over time. Some of the mitigation services Access Environmental Associates, Inc. offers are:

PROTECTED SPECIES SERVICES

In the state of Florida protected wildlife species are regulated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) under the Endangered Species ACT (ESA), and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC) under 39‑27 of the Florida Administrative Code. To assist its clients with wildlife issues relating to both non‑development and development concerns, Access Environmental Associates, Inc. has extensive experience in both federal and state wildlife regulations and guidelines. The following is a listing of specific services Access Environmental Associates, Inc. provides to its clients:

Under the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq., Federal agencies are prohibited from jeopardizing threatened or endangered species or adversely modifying habitats essential to their survival. The responsible official shall identify all designated protected species and their habitat that may be affected by an EPA action. If listed species or their habitat may be affected, formal consultation must be undertaken with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and/or the National Marine Fisheries Service, as appropriate. If consultation reveals that the activity may jeopardize a listed species or habitat, mitigation measures may be considered. Qualified Access Environmental Associates, Inc. personnel are experienced with on‑site species and critical habitat surveys. Our unique specialties include such species as the flatwoods salamander, gopher tortoise, eastern indigo snake, bald eagle, woodstork, and the Florida scrub jay.

Access Environmental Associates, Inc. utilizes the guidelines and methodologies employed by and accepted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Our staff has extensive experience utilizing field techniques such as pedestrian transects, drift fencing, dip netting, benthic sampling, mist netting, pit trapping, funnel trapping, and live trap techniques. Through the use of these methods Access Environmental Associates, Inc. can accurately determine the presence and extent of state or federally listed threatened or endangered species and their populations.

The Access Environmental Associates, Inc. professional staff has extensive experience drafting and negotiating the permit applications necessary in resolving protected species issues. With various species being listed as endangered or threatened by both the federal government as well as the state of Florida it is imperative that the environmental professional fully understand the regulations governing the protection of the species at both levels of government, as well as the agencies that enforce those regulations. Our principal staff has extensive experience in negotiating and drafting both federal and state Incidental Takings Permit applications, Habitat Conservation Plans, Relocation and Re‑introduction Plans, and Avoidance and Minimization Plans. Specifically our staff has drafted Incidental Takings Permit applications for gopher tortoises, eastern indigo snakes, and Florida Scrub Jay, Habitat Conservation Plans for the eastern indigo snake, avoidance and minimization plans for the gopher tortoise, eastern indigo snake, bald eagle, Florida scrub jay and red-cockaded woodpecker.

Access Environmental Associates, Inc. provides a wide range of wetland and ecological resource related consulting services, which are designed to serve our Clients' assortment of needs. Our company's Clientele represent a wide variety of private and commercial categories: Major telecommunication companies, civil engineers and land planners, development firms, private land owners, transportation authorities, county school boards, Federal Department of Transportation, general contractors, timber companies, and utility authorities. Our Principal Staff has extensive experience permitting and resolving jurisdictional wetland issues, designing and implementing wetland mitigation plans as well as experience in resolving protected species issues.