Wildlands’ project wins APWA-NC’s 2019 Project of the Year!

We are honored to announce that our Reedy Creek Stream Restoration Design-Build project was awarded the 2019 APWA-NC Stormwater Project of the Year in the category of Natural Systems! The selection committee was “impressed by the overall scope and success of the project.”

Wildlands served as the prime consultant for the Reedy Creek Stream Restoration Design-Build project, which was the first design-build project to generate stream and wetland mitigation units for the City of Charlotte Umbrella Stream and Wetland Mitigation Bank.

(below image-collage courtesy of APWA-NC)

Wildlands Advocates for Thoughtful Industry Policies

Early in 2019, the EPA began a process to rewrite the Clean Water Act definition of Waters of the US by publishing a draft rule for public comment.  The proposed rule threatens to significantly curtail the protection afforded under the Act to our Nation’s streams, wetlands, and waterways.  Wildlands worked with our state industry group, the NC Environmental Restoration Association, to develop a formal response letter representing our industry’s perspective on the proposed rule.  The association’s letter pointed out a number of technical and scientific flaws with the proposed rule.  For instance, one stated goal of the rule is to ‘create regulatory certainty for the regulated community’ however there are numerous terms that are introduced in the rule but are undefined and subject to interpretation.  We also pointed out significant flaws with the financial impact analysis that is discussed in the proposed rule.  As of September 2019, the EPA had announced plans to rescind the  2015 Waters of the US definition that was proposed under the Obama Administration.  This is the first step in a stated three prong approach from the Trump Administration to permanently rollback water quality protections under the Clean Water Act.  Wildlands is continuing to work with partners at the state and federal levels to limit the impact of such changes on our industry and the water resources we all work to restore and protect.