Nationwide Hydroelectric Environmental and Engineering Support Services for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Nationwide
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently renewed a 5-year contract with the Louis Berger Group to prepare environmental impact statements (EISs) and environmental assessments (EAs). This is the second renewal of our services to the Commission, our third 5-year contract.
Working on behalf of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP), Berger continues to assist the agency in its regulation of hydropower plants throughout the United States. OEP is responsible for regulating nonfederal hydropower development consistent with federal and state environmental laws, and ensuring that environmental and other concerns are adequately addressed. In addition, Berger may assist the Commission in the regulation of new, renewable energy technologies such as tidal power—and may assist in developing efficient regulatory frameworks so developers can efficiently meet our nation’s growing energy needs.
This challenging contract requires the ability to mobilize a nationwide staff with environmental expertise, and the ability to perform the work in an unbiased manner while interacting with applicants, agencies, and a variety of public interest groups. An important part of Berger’s services on this contract consists of scoping out the key environmental issues and assessing complex environmental impacts. Evaluating effects on water quality is naturally an important aspect for this work.
The staff must then determine whether environmental protection, mitigation, and enhancement measures will reduce impacts to an environmentally acceptable level and then draft license conditions and other documents that will ensure that resources are adequately protected or enhanced and effects are mitigated. In addition to evaluating potential environmental impacts and recommending protection, mitigation, and enhancement measures, Berger also has principal responsibility for evaluating the many potential engineering issues, including those related to water quality and hydrology.
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