Through our work with numerous U.S. federal agencies, corporations, law firms, and communities for more than 30 years, we’ve developed thought leadership and deep subject matter expertise to anticipate client needs in environmental assessment, formulating timely, workable answers and solutions.

We develop process management strategies by asking: What impact will existing and emerging policies, guidance, regulations, and market and industry trends have on your environmental review process?

Our team finds the answer in four ways by:

  • Staying connected in Washington, D.C.
  • Tracking regional, state, and local regulations
  • Monitoring court decisions
  • Analyzing markets and industries

The resulting insights combined with our high-level and on-the-ground experience enable us to develop and manage complex environmental reviews.

NEPA, CEQA, and SEPA

We support clients in preparing legally defensible environmental impact assessments through services related to U.S. federal, regional, and state environmental regulations, including NEPA, CEQA, and SEPA.

We help clients develop efficient, effective strategies to avoid potential liabilities that can arise during the environmental review process. We frequently work on time-sensitive projects and offer in-house resources throughout the project lifecycle, in areas ranging from project planning to greenhouse gases to community outreach.

Our team offers a broad range of expertise and services related to National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and Washington State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), including:

  • Project design concepting, and assistance
  • Air quality, traffic, noise, and water quality analysis
  • Biological and cultural resource assessments
  • Preparation of joint documents for U.S. federal and state agencies
  • Document preparation for federal approval under areas including the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and cultural resources laws
  • Community outreach and comment analysis

With our extensive work in policy and in the field, we stay at the forefront of the emerging actions and trends that impact environmental regulatory compliance, such as:

  • Court decisions
  • Statutory and regulatory changes
  • Climate change analysis
  • Emergency response planning
  • Alternative energy sources and green technologies
  • Public health

U.S. environmental regulatory compliance

We support comprehensive, streamlined management of the regulatory process in environmental planning and development to keep projects moving ahead in full environmental regulatory compliance.

We help clients navigate U.S. regulatory compliance through the full lifecycle of an environmental project, finding legally and technically sound ways to manage resources and realize efficiencies.

Our recognized technical experts match understanding of environmental regulatory compliance with expertise in subjects such as engineering, law, policy, and public outreach and communication. We create precise documentation of environmental impact and keep up with court decisions that can influence compliance. We can also readily tap leaders in multiple subject areas, including Washington, D.C.-based regulatory analysis professionals, to get answers quickly.

Our in-house professionals are trusted to provide training in environmental regulatory compliance to corporations, agencies, academic facilities, and communities—many of which also look to us for support with complex regulatory issues or overall strategy consulting.

We can readily handle complex and overlapping regulatory compliance challenges, including those specified in:

  • U.S. Clean Water Act (CWA, Sections 401, 402, 404)
  • U.S. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
  • U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA, Sections 7 and 10)
  • U.S. Coastal Zone Management Act
  • U.S. Rivers and Harbors Act (Sections 10 and 408)
  • U.S. National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA, Section 106)
  • California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
  • Washington State and Oregon Environmental Policy Act (SEPA)
  • U.S. federal and state fish and wildlife codes
  • State departments of environmental quality

International environmental and social impact assessments

We help development partners design, conduct, analyze, and build capacity around high-quality environmental and social impact assessments. By combining our deep technical expertise across multiple disciplines with a global network of specialists and partnerships, we bring a meticulous focus on quality.

Our team offers extensive expertise in:

  • All U.S. federal regulations, including the Foreign Assistance Act Parts 117, 118, 119; Title 22, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 216; and individual agencies’ Environmental Compliance Procedures.
  • International Finance Corporation’s Performance Standards on Environmental and Social Sustainability.
  • Working across a diverse range of countries in Africa, South and Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East, and Europe and Eurasia.
  • Training and capacity building strategies and tools that harness the latest in adult learning techniques and the powers of technology for effective remote learning.
  • Technology enablement to streamline performance, including: CommentWorks®, our proprietary web-based public comment analysis software to accurately and comprehensively capture public comment in regulatory compliance; and WayPoint™ for data visualization, analysis, and reporting.

Our work