Environmental Services Include:
SJCA offers ecological field investigations and reporting for both public and private sector projects. With a combined experience of over 13 years, the firm’s staff are prequalified by the Indiana Department of Transportation to perform on-site investigations for wetlands, waterways, and other ecological systems and habitats. Staff conduct thorough field investigations to identify indicators for wetland hydrology, vegetation, soils, and to provide in-depth analysis of any water resources. SJCA will perform all necessary field work and background research necessary to complete ecological evaluations and will use this information to prepare mitigations plans when impacts cannot be avoided, and mitigation is required.
When clients work with SJCA trained professionals they know they will be provided with the information they need to understand where sensitive resources and hazards are located, their options for impact avoidance, the plan for mitigation of unavoidable impacts, and the permits they need to construct the project. The staff has many years of applied experience working with of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and their associated wetland/waterway regulations. The staff includes INDOT pre-qualified ecologists and environmental technicians and specialists that have worked on hundreds of transportation projects over several decades. The team provides the complete scope of environmental services needed to efficiently move a project from preliminary design to ready for construction.
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires that all projects with federal funding evaluate the impacts of the project on the environment. Technical writing and NEPA document preparation are one of our fortes. SJCA’s Environmental Staff has produced hundreds of NEPA documents for projects of all types across Indiana. The staff is a group of trained professionals who are NEPA certified by FHWA and pre-qualified with INDOT. They handle all aspects of the NEPA process including collaboration with engineers to develop an approach to construction that will minimize environmental impacts and the time delays and costs that come with mitigation. With a strong understanding of the INDOT project development process and infrastructure construction methods, staff work as an integral part of the team to help the project avoid unnecessary delays associated with environmental investigations and regulatory approvals.
SJCA is under contract with the Indiana Housing & Community Development Authority (IHCDA) to review Environmental & Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (Section 106) documentation as part of project applications through programs such as the Community Block Development Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Program (HOME). Because these projects receive federal funding through the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD), the policies under NEPA and Section 106 are required. In 2019, SJCA (then Green 3) assisted IHCDA and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources – Division of Historic Preservation & Archaeology (IDNR – DHPA) in creating webinars (live and recorded) for applicants to understand the various IHCDA programs and processes and complete the Environmental Review Record (ERR) documentation successfully. Staff attended the 2019 Indiana Housing Conference and spoke on a panel with other panelists from IHCDA and IDNR-DHPA on these programs and processes. If you are working on an application for IHCDA or would like to know more information, please contact Karen Wood at kwood@sjcainc.com or visit the IHCDA Environmental and Section 106 Review website at the link below. https://www.in.gov/ihcda/developers/environmental-review-and-section-106/