California Environmental Insights Oct. 2017, Project Updates – Successful Construction Season on the West SAFCA Southport Levee Improvement Project

The GEI Environmental Practice is assisting the West Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency (WSAFCA) with environmental compliance during construction of the Southport Levee Improvement Project. GEI biologists began conducting preconstruction clearance surveys in December 2016. Construction commenced in May 2017 and will continue for another 1–2 years. GEI is providing construction and compliance monitoring.  In 2017, GEI biologists conducted surveys and monitoring for bats, potential giant garter snake habitat, nesting birds and bird nests, and Swainson’s hawk and other special-status raptors, as required in the project’s Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program and permit terms.

Looking back on the 2017 construction season, the GEI Environmental Team provided a variety of biological services and overcame many challenging circumstances. During peak construction activity, up to four biologists were onsite conducting construction monitoring and pre-construction surveys. As construction activities progressed, less biological monitoring became necessary. Communication is critical to successful fieldwork, and GEI’s field crews use a number of online database tools to provide real-time data management and keep all parties – GEI, WSAFCA, and contractors – as informed as possible in real time.

GEI Contact: Eric Htain, ehtain@geiconsultants.com