Restoration Company Expands Services with New Ecological Engineering Team
Ecotone, a full-delivery ecological restoration company offering a diverse suite of design-build services ranging from conservation, sediment/nutrient abatement and mitigation of stream, floodplain, forest, and wetland restoration to stormwater improvement projects, has formed its own in-house engineering team to enhance and broaden their services. To support this new team that will collaborate on its in-house design and construction services that began in March 2022, Ecotone announces an office location in Columbia, Pennsylvania.
The team is headed by the Director of Ecological Engineering, Drew Altland, a professional engineer with nearly 30 years of experience. He specializes in stream, wetland and floodplain assessment and restoration design, watershed investigations, fluvial geomorphology, sediment transport studies, hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, 2D hydrodynamic modeling, flood impact and improvement studies, construction document preparation, environmental permitting, and construction management services. Drew has participated in multiple STAC workshops related to stream and floodplain restoration, been an active contributor to the Maryland Hydraulics Panel, and is a member of the Expert Panels re-convened to update stream restoration protocols for the Consensus Recommendations to Improve the Application of Protocols 1, 2 and 3. Drew has a B.S. in Civil Engineering with a water resources focus from the Pennsylvania State University and is a registered professional engineer in MD, PA, NC, TN, TX, GA and Washington DC.
Also joining Drew is Jason Coleman, PE, Manager of Engineering. Jason has more than 20 years of experience as a professional engineer in water resources engineering, focusing on hydrologic/hydraulic analyses and ecosystem restoration. He is skilled in stream and wetland analysis and design, geomorphic assessments, stream and watershed assessments, pre- and post-condition monitoring, flood studies, riverine hydraulics, bridge hydraulics, scour analyses, fish passage and dam removal design, dam breach analyses, 2D hydrodynamic modeling, and preparation of FEMA map amendments. Jason has taken part in and been a contributor to the Maryland Hydraulics Panel, was a member of the Expert Panel to Define Removal Rates for Individual Stream Restoration Projects (Protocols 2 and 3) and is currently a board member of the Maryland Association of Floodplain and Stormwater Managers (MAFSM).
“We are thrilled to welcome Drew, Jason, and team to Ecotone,” said Scott McGill, CEO of Ecotone, LLC. “Drew is highly respected in the industry, has a great track record with clients, and produces amazing ecological outcomes. We are excited for the opportunity to expand our services to include living shoreline, dam removal/breach analysis and design, tidal analysis, bridge/culvert analysis, vulnerability/risk assessment and much more to help solve the most important ecological and water quality challenges we face within our communities.”
Ecotone’s in-house engineering team lead by Drew Atland who has been a leader in pioneering a sustainable approach to restoration for over the past 25 years throughout the Eastern USA to address water quality, mitigation, habitat, flooding, and infrastructure protection improvement goals.
The photo illustrates a stream that is restored to its pre-settlement condition. These streams are highly connected to their floodplains to promote significant exchange between baseflow, groundwater, and the restored riparian wetlands. This restoration approach typically serves to maximize water quality and ecological benefits.
Joining Drew and Jason are Jess Mazzur, EIT Engineer; Emily Steenkamer, EIT Engineer; Aidan Suiter, PE & Project Engineer; Matt Drennan, Project Scientist; Jason Bach, CADD Designer; and recent addition of Cal Novelli, EIT Engineer. With combined experience of over 100 years in the engineering field, this team will round out Ecotone’s expertise and solidify its leadership in the ecological restoration industry.
With the added capacity of the engineering team, Ecotone has launched a new office at 430 Walnut Street, Suite 303, Columbia, Pennsylvania. The company looks forward to helping to address and solve environmental and ecological problems for Pennsylvania communities and their watersheds.
About Ecotone:
Founded in 1998, Ecotone is an ecological restoration company that designs and builds sustainable ecosystems to reduce erosion of stream banks, manage stormwater, conserve, and restore wetlands, and restore forests. The company also owns and operates a native plant nursery and provides full-delivery ecosystem restoration, mitigation, design, construction, and consulting solutions throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. To learn more, please visit www.ecotoneinc.com.
PUBLISHED: PRNewswire
