Skip to content
Herrera
  • Team
  • Story
  • Projects
  • Publications
  • Services
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Search

Vegetation and Wildlife Surveys for Bonneville Power I-5 Corridor

The Bonneville Power Administration proposed to build a new 500-kV transmission line and substations that would run for 80 miles from northwest Oregon into southwest Washington. This was a complicated project that spanned two states and encompassed over 100,000 acres of assessment area. Field-verifying conditions for the entire area was not possible, so we relied heavily on GIS to efficiently analyze vegetation, wildlife habitat, streams, and wetlands from our desktops and prioritize field efforts. This included a project-wide remote sensing analysis and predictive modeling of wetland distribution, and a comprehensive rating analysis based on these data that was accepted by Ecology and the Corps for initial permit review. The model output was field-verified by scientists and used to determine boundaries for hundreds of previously unmapped wetlands. To meet an aggressive NEPA schedule, we also developed a GIS-based classification system to identify land cover types based primarily on aerial photography and topography interpretation. These land cover types were then used along with available data from state agencies to identify potential hotspots for rare plant and animal species that was accepted as sufficient for NEPA compliance.

Location
Washington and Oregon
Owner
Bonneville Power Administration
Project Contact
Jenn Schmidt, GISP
Services
Ecological Surveys and Monitoring
Geospatial Science
NEPA/SEPA, ESA & Environmental Permitting
Project Type
Environmental Science
NEPA/SEPA, ESA & Environmental Permitting

Related Projects

View all projects →

Swift Creek Sediment Management Action Plan Implementation

→

Port Susan Bay Estuary Restoration

→

Cornet Bay and Hoypus Point Improvements at Deception Pass State Park

→

Cottonwood Creek Wetland and Stream Delineations

→

Puget Sound Shore Friendly Program Support

→

Shannon Point Shoreline Improvements

→

Navigation

  • Team
  • Story
  • Projects
  • Publications
  • Services
  • Blog
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Search

Our Offices

Seattle, WA
2200 Sixth Avenue
Suite 1100
Seattle, WA 98121
Phone (206) 441-9080
Contact: Phil Coughlan
Portland, OR
1001 SE Water Avenue
Suite 290
Portland, OR 97214
Phone (503) 228-4301
Contact: Ellen McClure

 

Missoula, MT
101 East Broadway
Suite 610
Missoula, MT 59802
Phone (406) 998-6760
Contact: Heidi Houck
Bellingham, WA
1329 North State Street
Suite 200
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone (360) 398-5075
Contact: Chris Webb

 

Olympia, WA
1220 4th Avenue E
Olympia, WA 98506
Phone (360) 754-7644
Contact: Joy Michaud
LinkedInFacebookTwitterInstagram
Join our Newsletter

Copyright © 2018 Herrera Environmental Consultants - Made by Needmore

Join Our Newsletter