During the summer and fall of 2008, SGE partnered with R.J. Turner Company to conduct a road inventory and prepare a capital budget plan for the Town of Waitsfield, focusing on possible erosion-related impacts to water quality and aquatic habitat. The information will guide the town’s maintenance and repair priorities over the next 5 years. 

Tasks that were completed as part of the project include:

1.       The review of an existing culvert inventory and other data, including the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) bridge and culvert assessment database, to identify “potential problem zones”.    

2.       Examination of the roads and drainage structures within these zones, focusing on those crossings of streams that support permanent flow, and incorporating additional information into the existing town database where erosion problems exist or have a potential for occurring. 

3.       Collaboration with the town road foreman to develop recommended treatment options and estimate the treatment costs.

4.       Presentation of the results to the town and work with town staff to develop a 5-year capital plan to address the proposed repairs.

SGE Project Roles:  Project Management, Field Data Compilation, Project Identification & Alternatives Analysis, and Project Design

Ongoing Wetland Restoration Planning in Franklin County, Vermont

Shelley Gustafson is currently working with landowners in Franklin County, Vermont to develop and refine wetland restoration plans on numerous tracts that had been altered in the past through agricultural management practices.  As a component of this effort, Ms. Gustafson coordinated the development of an extensive erosion control plan for an eroding slope that had been exporting sediment into an adjacent floodplain area.  Ms. Gustafson serves as liaison between the landowners and the Environmental Protection Agency. 

SGE Project Roles:  Project Management, Project Design, and Securing Regulatory Authorizations

Vernal Pool and Wetland Resource Inventory - US Forest Service / Bromley Ski Area

SGE is part of team, led by Heindel & Noyes, Inc., conducting an ecological survey for the development of an Environmental Impact Statement to assess the effects associated with a potential land transfer between the US Forest Service and Bromley Ski Area.  SGE is in charge of the vernal pool/wetland resource evaluation component of the overall study.  

SGE Project Roles for General Contract: Project Management, Wetland Delineation and Functional Evaluation, Wetland Impact Analysis, Data Analysis and Reporting

Ecosystem Protection and Restoration for VT ANR, Center for Clean and Clear

SGE is part of a team, led by Vermont Wetland Plant Supply, LLC, providing ecosystem protection and restoration services to the VT Agency of Natural Resources between 2009 and 2011. 

Beginning in March 2009, our team will be conducting a preliminary feasibility and alternatives analysis at the Collins Perley Athletic Facility in St. Albans, Vermont, with the goal of improving the treatment and retention of stormwater runoff from both on and off-site areas.  SGE’s role in this effort will be the evaluation of potential wetland restoration and enhancement activities within land adjacent to the athletic facility, and their effect on overall sediment and phosphorus retention within the local watershed.

SGE Project Roles for General Contract: Wetland Delineation and Functional Evaluation, Wetland Restoration Planning and Design, Permitting Support