BIOLOGICAL SERVICES & REGULATORY COMPLIANCE

Sequoia provides integrated biological, permitting, and project management assistance, effectively supporting projects from the planning phase through the mitigation monitoring phase.

  • Environmental Training (Bilingual Training Available)
  • Preconstruction Surveys
  • Daily Monitoring and Reporting
  • Long-Term Mitigation Monitoring
  • Stormwater BMP Inspection
  • Stormwater and Water Quality Monitoring
  • Nesting Bird Surveys
  • Protocol Species Surveys
  • Construction Boundary Demarcating and Mapping
  • Site Restoration and Reseeding
  • Project Management
  • Safety Compliance
  • Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting

Sequoia has recovery permits and MOUs and has conducted protocol surveys for the following
species: CTS, CRLF, SFGS, VPB, FYLF, CSP, NOGO, Bald Eagle, SNYLF. Sequoia can also conduct surveys for the following species:

  • USFWS 10(a)(1)(a) Recovery Permits
  • California Red-Legged Frog
  • California Tiger Salamander
  • San Francisco Garter Snake
  • Vernal Pool Branchiopods
  • Burrowing Owl
  • Swainson’s Hawk
  • Sierra Nevada Yellow-Legged Frog
  • California Spotted Owl
  • Bat Surveys
  • Bald Eagle
  • Willow Flycatcher
  • Protocol Herpetofauna
  • Foothill Yellow-Legged Frog
  • Yosemite Toad
  • San Joaquin Kit Fox
  • Yellow-Legged Frog

Sequoia’s botanists have extensive experience in rare plant inventories, restoration planning, seed collection, vegetation and invasive species mapping, and more! our botanical services include:

  • Arborist Surveys
  • Rare Plant Surveys
  • Invasive Weed Mapping
  • Hazard Tree Identification
  • Restoration Planning
  • Implementation and Monitoring

With Sequoia Principal Brett Hanshew at the helm of our fisheries work, Sequoia has provided fisheries support on numerous hydroelectric and salmonid restoration projects throughout the state, including in the Sierra Nevada Mountains on the Stanislaus River for PG&E, the Russian River for Syar Industries, and the Battle Creek Watershed for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Our fisheries include:

  • Electrofishing Surveys
  • Fish Relocations and Fish Rescues
  • Seining/Netting
  • Snorkel Surveys
  • Salmonid Habitat Assessments
  • Redd Counts

Sequoia’s qualified biologists routinely conduct species and habitat surveys throughout the state. Different agencies have varying requirements for how the surveys are conducted, as well as how the results are reported. Sequoia has experience with many different methodologies to ensure compliance with agency and client requirements. Our biological resources surveys include:

  • Constraints Analysis
  • Infrared Camera Trapping Surveys
  • Nesting Bird Surveys
  • Habitat Surveys
  • Species inventory
  • Large Mammal Migration & Movement Surveys
  • GIS Mapping
  • Biological Surveys to Support Initial Studies
  • NESMIs
  • EAs
  • USFWS Section 7 and Section 10 Permitting
  • CDFW 2080.1 and 2081 Permitting
  • Interagency Review Team Mitigation/Conservation Bank Applications
  • Agency Consultation and Relations
  • Permitting Needs Assessments and Strategies
  • Permit Tracking and Agency Reporting
  • Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act Section 10 Permit
  • Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act U.S. Coast Guard Section 9, Rivers and Harbors Bridge Permit
  • Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 401 and 404 Permits
  • Endangered Species Act Section 10 Habitat Conservation Plan/Incidental Take Permit
  • Federal Endangered Species Act Section 7 Consultation
  • California Fish and Game Code Section 1602 Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreement
  • California Fish and Game Code Section 2080.1/2081 Take Authorizations
  • CWA State Water Resources Control Board Order WQ 2014-0174-DWQ National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit
  • Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act Regional Water Quality Control Board California Water Code Section 7 Discharge Permits
  • Joint Aquatic Resource Permits
  • Other Local Discretionary Permits
  • Local Ministerial Permits

OUR SERVICES INCLUDE:

Construction Compliance & Biological Monitoring

  • Environmental Training (Bilingual Training Available)
  • Preconstruction Surveys
  • Daily Monitoring and Reporting
  • Long-Term Mitigation Monitoring
  • Stormwater BMP Inspection
  • Stormwater and Water Quality Monitoring
  • Nesting Bird Surveys
  • Protocol Species Surveys
  • Construction Boundary Demarcating and Mapping
  • Site Restoration and Reseeding
  • Project Management
  • Safety Compliance
  • Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting

Botany

Sequoia’s botanists come with experience in rare plant inventories, restoration planning, seed collection, vegetation and invasive species mapping, and more!

  • Arborist Surveys
  • Rare Plant Surveys
  • Invasive Weed Mapping
  • Hazard Tree Identification
  • Restoration Planning
  • Implementation and Monitoring

Biological Resource Surveys

Sequoia’s qualified biologists routinely conduct species and habitat surveys throughout the state. Different agencies have varying requirements for how the surveys are conducted, as well as how the results are reported. Sequoia has experience with many different methodologies to ensure compliance with agency and client requirements.

  • Constraints Analysis
  • Infrared Camera Trapping Surveys
  • Nesting Bird Surveys
  • Habitat Surveys
  • Species inventory
  • Large Mammal Migration & Movement Surveys
  • GIS Mapping
  • Biological Surveys to Support Initial Studies
  • NESMIs
  • EAs

Special Status Species Surveys & Reporting

Sequoia has recovery permits and MOUs and has conducted protocol surveys for the following species: CTS, CRLF, SFGS, VPB, FYLF, CSP, NOGO, Bald Eagle, SNYLF. Sequoia can also conduct surveys for the following species:

  • California Red-Legged Frog
  • California Tiger Salamander
  • San Francisco Garter Snake
  • Vernal Pool Branchiopods
  • Burrowing Owl
  • Swainson’s Hawk
  • Bats
  • Bald Eagle
  • Willow Flycatcher
  • Yosemite Toad
  • San Joaquin Kit Fox
  • Vernal Pool Branchiopod
  • Yellow-Legged Frog

Fisheries

With our Principal, Brett Hanshew, at the helm of our fisheries work, Sequoia has provided fisheries support on numerous hydroelectric and salmonid restoration projects throughout the state, including in the Sierra Nevada Mountains on the Stanislaus River for PG&E, the Russian River for Syar Industries, and the Battle Creek Watershed for Bureau of Reclamation.

  • Electrofishing Surveys
  • Fish Relocations and Fish Rescues
  • Seining/Netting
  • Snorkel Surveys
  • Salmonid Habitat Assessments
  • Redd Counts

Resource Agency Permitting

  • USFWS Section 7 and Section 10 Permitting
  • CDFW 2080.1 and 2081 Permitting
  • Interagency Review Team Mitigation/Conservation Bank Applications
  • Agency Consultation and Relations
  • Permitting Needs Assessments and Strategies
  • Permit Tracking and Agency Reporting
  • Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act Section 10 Permit
  • Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act U.S. Coast Guard Section 9, Rivers and Harbors Bridge Permit
  • Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 401 and 404 Permits
  • Endangered Species Act Section 10 Habitat Conservation Plan/Incidental Take Permit
  • Federal Endangered Species Act Section 7 Consultation
  • California Fish and Game Code Section 1602 Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreement
  • California Fish and Game Code Section 2080.1/2081 Take Authorizations
  • CWA State Water Resources Control Board Order WQ 2014-0174-DWQ National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit
  • Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act Regional Water Quality Control Board California Water Code Section 7 Discharge Permits
  • Joint Aquatic Resource Permits
  • Other Local Discretionary Permits
  • Local Ministerial Permits

“Because my emails and phone calls are promptly returned, I always feel that I am your only client.  And as you well know, our projects come with their own unique challenges relating to field conditions and permit restrictions, and Sequoia’s knowledgeable staff has always arrived at feasible and often times cost-effective solutions that were readily approved by City and/or the regulatory agencies.  I appreciate that your staff has freely educated me on the intent of our permits. I have also witnessed your staff enlighten the permit agencies on a number of occasions.”

“The team at Sequoia Ecological Consulting was critical to effective hazardous fuel reduction for the North Orinda Shaded Fuel Break.  By having their biologists evaluate sites before work began we could avoid potential environmental impacts and accelerate the project. Their staff’s expertise continued to guide field crews throughout the work, giving the whole project team confidence that we could adjust the project to meet the best management practices and comply with the myriad of environmental requirements while reducing the potential of wildfire.”

“Sequoia has been a very important team member for our multifaceted mining and reclamation projects. Sequoia’s vast biological knowledge and experts have been paramount in the success our land use projects which span many different localities and geographic areas. In addition, to having expertise in many fields of biology, they are able to interact and understand all of the differing requirements of each resource agency finding a way through the regulatory process for each project.”

“Sequoia has provided biological monitoring support for my program for nearly five years. Our program is large and complex and involves potential impacts to several threatened species. Sequoia is always on top of it. Sequoia’s project managers are sharp, communicative, and thorough. Their biologists are great with the crews, and largely due to their guidance we rarely see compliance issues. They are experts on the species we work with and leverage their expertise to ensure the least possible risk to them. My project manager provides prompt weekly updates, and monitoring reports arrive complete and clearly organized. Any questions and issues that come up with project compliance are communicated promptly and resolved easily.

One of the most impressive things about Sequoia is that the staff are not there merely to provide a service; staff actively engage in collaborative problem-solving with the client, which has saved my agency money and time. Their staff are highly qualified scientists, but the best kind of scientists – with a keen eye toward communication and customer service. I know that my project manager has my project’s best interests at heart, and I trust her completely. I would recommend Sequoia for any biological compliance project without hesitation.”

“Sequoia staff was professional, friendly, and flexible, even while working in difficult post-wildfire environments with a variety of challenges. The assessments and survey methodologies paid exceptional attention to detail and the resulting deliverables were top notch.”

“Sequoia’s biologists provided very helpful biological surveys and project monitoring on many PG&E gas and electric maintenance projects while I was PG&E’s Habitat Conservation Plan Administrator.  I could always count on their careful attention to quality and cost while they performed this work in support of both the San Joaquin Valley and Bay Area HCPs that covered 18 counties in California.  Sequoia’s management and staff are awesome.”

“Sequoia has provided critical support in the planning and implementing vegetation and stream bank restoration projects associated with PG&E’s Spring Gap Stanislaus Hydroelectric Project, including the Kennedy Meadows Streambank and Riparian Restoration, Sand Bar Diversion Fish Screen, Strawberry Weir Replacement, and the Stanislaus Afterbay Dam Removal projects.  They conducted pre-disturbance inventories, developed and implemented revegetation plans, and provided maintenance and monitoring after implementation was complete.  Sequoia has been a major player on our team, always communicating in a timely fashion, especially when issues arise, and always ready to go the extra mile when called upon.”

“Sequoia’s environmental field team are not only professional, but also insert themselves as a valuable asset to any project they are assigned to. The Sequoia team remains top subject matter experts in their field and are extremely knowledgeable, easy to deconflict/coordinate with, as well as bring in constructive outside views on environmental concerns as projects progress. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Sequoia at all opportunities available!”

“Having worked with the Sequoia Team for a year I can say, Sequoia epitomizes a team culture and is solution-driven.”

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU?

Sequoia would be happy to discuss how we can assist you with your project.
We typically respond within 24 hours.

REQUEST A CONSULTATION