1 The Westervelt Company

Overview

2 Westervelt Ecological Services

Overview

3 Our Banks and Projects

Alabama

California

Florida

Mississippi

Nebraska

17 Roles & Qualifications

Business Leaders

Process Leaders

Rocky Mountain Region

Southeast Region

Western Region

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COMPANY OVERVIEW

One of America's premier land resource companies

and a leader in sustainable forest management and

conservation practices, The Westervelt Company

(TWC) was founded by Herbert Westervelt as

Prairie States Paper Corporation in 1884. The private organization owns nearly 500,000

acres across the nation.

A land resource organization, TWC is committed to

preserving land for future generations. Our business

pursuits meet or exceed environmental, legal, and

regulatory requirements, and robustly pursue new

practices that embody our sustainability mission.

Our timber-management practices include: streamside-

management zones to improve water quality, immediate

replanting to ensure a sustainable forest, continual forest

management, and wildlife enhancement with on-staff

biologists. Our forestry management has earned

certification from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI).

TWC plants millions of trees each year, harvests only in small compartments, and is the

only major industrial landowner to be recognized by the Alabama Forestry Commission

for pioneering forest management techniques, wildlife enrichment efforts, and

conservation practices.

Our manufacturing facilities maintain the highest emissions standards for air and water

quality.

We are committed to:

• Minimizing the greenhouse gas emissions from our business operations.

• Protecting and enhancing watershed quality on company owned, leased, or

managed lands and reducing our water usage where possible.

• Improving habitat quality wherever we operate.

• Managing our renewable resources in a sustainable and environmentally sound

manner.

• Improving the efficiency of our energy consumption.

• Seeking ways to use renewable energy sources.

• Working with our government and regulatory agencies, customers, suppliers, and

associates to mutually improve our environment.

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WESTERVELT ECOLOGICAL SERVICES

Established in 2006, Westervelt Ecological Services (WES) is an integral part of TWC, a

century-old land resource organization committed to preserving resources for future

generations.

WES owns and operates mitigation and conservation banks on company-owned

properties and provides environmental mitigation and habitat planning services to

private landowners, businesses, government agencies, non-profits, and land trust

organizations across the United States. Through our work, WES has restored over 8,000

acres of wetland and endangered species habitat on over 18,000 acres of preserved

properties nationwide, establishing WES as a recognized leader in our field.

WES’s professional in-house associates include:

• Biologists • GIS Analysts

• Conservation Planners • Land Acquisition Specialists

• Project Managers • Landscape Architects

• Ecologists • Professional Wetland Scientists

• Foresters

WES offers over 150 years of collective environmental restoration experience by our

associates and proficiency with strategic planning when unique or specialized studies are

required for mitigation project implementation.

WES seeks out land for protection that is often situated in a larger conservation

landscape, such as those that buffer public land. WES exercises the highest financial and

legal practices to ensure these banks are, in fact, protected in perpetuity. In addition,

WES can rely on its parent company for additional expertise including engineers,

surveyors, natural resource professionals, legal counsel, etc., to ensure that the highest

quality mitigation is performed. Key organizational attributes include:

• Extensive team experience in the process of planning and obtaining approvals for

mitigation banks.

• Full knowledge of local natural resources issues, restoration approaches, and

public interest groups.

• Commitment to sustainable solutions via proper site selection and stewardship.

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OUR BANKS AND PROJECTS The following projects in the United States demonstrate the team’s success in mitigation

bank development tasks, including planning, permitting, implementation, and

monitoring.

ALABAMA

Alabama River Mitigation Bank

In 2013, WES received approval for the 971-acre

Alabama River Mitigation Bank. The site has a unique

landscape position within the Alabama River Basin. It is

part of the Alluvial/Deltaic Plain physiographic region,

with ecology and geomorphology historically influenced

by the Alabama River.

Alabama’s Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy (2005) states in its discussion

of the Alabama River Basin, that one of the highest priority conservation actions is to

improve water quality and habitat quality throughout the basin and to support habitat

and riparian restoration. This project meets this conservation action.

Additionally, WES is participating with the ADCNR and USFWS to release and

reintroduction of the Orangenacre Mucket (Hamiota perovalis, a federally listed-threatened

mussel), within a section of Tallahatchee Creek within the bank property. The

Orangenacre Mucket, as well as the Ovate clubshell (Pleurobema perovatum, a federally

listed-endangered mussel) have been positively identified within the bank property.

Big Sandy Mitigation Bank

Big Sandy Mitigation Bank is a 1,060-acre stream

and wetland mitigation bank located in the Ridge

and Valley Region of Eastern Tuscaloosa County,

Alabama. The Bank protects the floodplain and

approximately four miles of Big Sandy Creek, a

major tributary to the Black Warrior River and one

of the most scenic rivers in Alabama. The Bank

also provides buffer land for the adjacent Talladega

National Forest, demonstrating WES’s commitment to finding properties with larger

conservation value.

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Big Sandy Mitigation Bank, Phase 2 Big Sandy Mitigation Bank, Phase 2 is a 73-acre stream mitigation

bank located in the Fall Line Hills Ecoregion, East Gulf Coastal

Plain Physiographic Region of southern Tuscaloosa County,

Alabama. The Bank is an extension of tributaries contained within

Big Sandy Mitigation Bank and provides further protection of

riparian areas along these tributaries. Approximately 2.5 miles of

tributaries to Big Sandy Creek, a major tributary to the Black

Warrior River, are within the boundaries of Big Sandy Mitigation

Bank, Phase 2.

Canoe Creek Mitigation Bank

Located in the Coosa River Basin in St. Clair County

Alabama, Canoe Creek Mitigation Bank is a 237-acre

project that permanently protects a portion of Little

Canoe Creek. As part of the project, WES is restoring

132-acres of wetlands and approximately 6,374 linear

feet of stream and riparian buffer.

Wetland restoration at the Canoe Creek Mitigation Bank includes the following habitat

types: hardwood forested, riparian hardwood forested, and hardwood forested slope.

These efforts meet conservation actions specified in the Alabama Comprehensive

Wildlife Conservation Strategy (2005), to “improve water quality and habitat quality

throughout the basin” and to “support habitat and riparian restoration”.

In addition, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has

identified the Coosa River Basin as “…the largest and most biologically diverse sub-

watershed of the Mobile River basin in terms of overall number of fishes, mussels and

aquatic snails.” The basin is home to 147 fish species, including a number that are

unique to the Coosa River basin. Among these are the Pygmy Sculpin, Holiday Darter,

Coosa Darter, and the Coldwater darter.

Locust Fork Mitigation Bank

Locust Fork Mitigation Bank is a 111-acre mitigation

bank located adjacent to the scenic Locust Fork River

in Blount County, Alabama. The site was specifically

chosen for mitigation due to its proximity to the river

that historically sustained high levels of aquatic

invertebrates.

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Restoration and enhancement activities on the site will include the re-connection of an

entrenched system back to a floodplain, in-stream channel work, establishment of grade

controls where needed to manage water flow and sheer stress in-channel, and enhancing

and/or preserving vegetative buffers along Locust Fork and five unnamed tributaries.

Restoration and enhancement of historic ecological structure and function on the

property will greatly enhance the watershed.

Lost Creek Mitigation Bank

The proposed Lost Creek Mitigation Bank consists of

two tracts of land in close proximity to each other; the

Lost Creek (northern) tract and the Allen Creek

(southern) tract. Allen Creek is a tributary to Lost Creek

directly downstream of the proposed project limits. The

site not only consists of these two named streams, but

also has several unnamed tributaries to Allen Creek and Lost Creek, as well as wetlands

and open water features. Lost Creek is a major tributary of the Black Warrior River

within the Black Warrior-Tombigbee River Basin.

The 183-acre project seeks to reduce siltation by restoring 13,622 linear feet of stream on

the property. The project will also improve the biological component to all project

stream and wetland functions for fish and terrestrial habitat throughout the site. In

addition, the proposed bank will offer permanent protection to all stream, riparian

buffers and wetlands within the project limits.

Yellowleaf Mitigation Bank

Yellowleaf Mitigation Bank provides compensatory

mitigation for stream and wetland impacts within its

mitigation service area. The 547-acre site is located

between Birmingham and Childersburg, Alabama in

eastern Shelby County along a portion of the

Yellowleaf Creek.

Aside from restoring lost wetland and stream functions, the site is managed to protect two extremely rare and endangered mussel species, the Triangular kidneyshell (Ptychobranchus greenii) and Southern clubshell (Pleurobema decisum) as well as two other federally protected mussel species, the Southern pigtoe (Pleurobema georgianum) and Fine-lined pocketbook (Lampsilis altilis). The Alabama spike, (Elliptio arca, a State protected mussel species), the Cylindrical lioplax snail, (Lioplax cyclostomaformis, a federally protected species), and the Cahaba lily, (Hymenocallis coronaria, species of special concern) have also been identified on the project.

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CALIFORNIA

Big Gun Conservation Bank

The Big Gun Conservation Bank, located in Placer

County, California, is the first bank to provide

compensatory credits for California red-legged frog

(Rana draytonii) in its Sierra Nevada Range. The Bank,

a 48-acre former gold mining site, has the highest

density of documented California red-legged frog in

the entire Sierra Nevada. In 2008, after several unsuccessful attempts by local, state and

federal entities to purchase the property with grant money, WES purchased the site to

assist the USFWS in accomplishing their recovery goals for the California red-legged

frog in the region.

Since its launch in 2008, California red-legged frog (CRF) populations have been

threatened by the mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis), thus WES requested to the USFWS

permission to dry one of the ponds in order to eradicate the mosquitofish. Among other

efforts to conserve and boost CRF populations, WES is working on erosion control,

vegetation management, and removal of non-native invasive species in efforts to

rehabilitate the CRF populations in the region.

Bullock Bend Mitigation Bank

The Bullock Bend Mitigation Bank is located along

the main stem of the Sacramento River. The 116-

acre bank restores off-channel habitat and assist in

the recovery of threatened salmonids, specifically

juvenile fall-run, winter-run, and spring-run Chinook.

While the bank has multiple benefits for riparian

dependent species, the site focus is to develop credits

that can be used to offset impacts to salmonid, riparian habitat and aquatic resources,

defined as Waters of the United States (WOTUS), regulated under the Clean Water Act.

Upon the completion of construction in the fall of 2016, the Inner Agency Revision

Team (IRT) will release the construction letter of credit. All permits for construction

have been closed and credit releases for bank signing and construction were received.

Land stewardship, hydrology, and vegetation management are well underway.

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Burke Ranch Conservation Bank

The 962-acre Burke Ranch Conservation Bank, in

Solano County, was approved by the USFWS and the

California Department of Fish and Wildlife to provide

conservation credits for vernal pool, Swainson’s hawk

and burrowing owl habitat. The vernal pool credits

include alkali playa, due to the presence of a rare soil

formation (gilgai soils) that have resulted in a complex of micro-mounds. The site was

also approved for over 500 acres of California tiger salamander (Ambystoma californiense)

aquatic and upland habitat compensation.

Establishment of the bank included GIS analysis, permitting and planning, interaction

with governmental agencies and coordination with local governments and landowners.

WES also coordinated its bank project with the Solano County Water Agency’s Habitat

Conservation Planning effort to ensure that the site would be complementary with its

proposed habitat preserve system.

Colusa Basin Mitigation Bank

WES established the Colusa Basin Mitigation Bank in

2014. This 160-acre wetland and Giant garter snake

(Thamnophis gigas) Bank is a subset of the total 215-acre

property. The 33.5-acre Maxwell Public Utility District

Treated Effluent Re-Use Project Mitigation Site for

Giant garter snake was implemented by WES on the

remaining portion in 2013.

Development of a mitigation bank for wetlands and wetland-dependent species on the

site is compatible with the surrounding properties and adds significantly to the large

continuous block of habitat developed in the Colusa Basin. Wetland Reserve Program

properties lie along the western border of the Bank Property, and the Colusa National

Wildlife Refuge lies north. The Reclamation District 2047 canal lies on the eastern edge

of the property and rice fields lie beyond the Department of Water Resources levee east

of the canal. As of monitoring year three (3), all performance standards for vegetation

and hydrology have been met.

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Cosumnes Floodplain Mitigation Bank

In 2009, WES received approval for the tidally-influenced

472-acre Cosumnes Floodplain Mitigation Bank. The

Bank, located in Sacramento County at the confluence of

the Cosumnes and Mokelumne Rivers, was approved by

an Interagency Review Team consisting of the U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, California Department of

Fish and Wildlife and the National Marine Fisheries Service. The approval of the Bank

was the culmination of three years of focused effort to acquire the property, clear the

title of outstanding easements and secure mineral rights, complete hydrologic modeling,

and gain agency approval for construction.

Restoration activities at the Bank began with the contouring back-water tidal channels

and floodplain terraces into the site. WES replanted riparian forest vegetation and

breached the levee on the Cosumnes River to restore natural hydrology and tidal

influence to the property, establishing natural processes and connecting the restored

floodplain habitats to the riverine ecosystem.

In 2011, WES was awarded the Tree Hero - Legacy Award by the Sacramento Tree

Foundation for preserving a historic remnant oak grove on the Bank property. WES

was awarded again in 2013, by the American Fisheries Society Western Division for

Excellence in Riparian Management at Cosumnes Floodplain Mitigation.

Monitoring conducted from 2010-2016, showed that the Bank met all success criteria

and was performing as intended to provide wetland and floodplain riparian habitats, as

well as supporting a number of fish species during flood events. The U.S. Army Corps

of Engineers, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the National Marine

Fisheries Service have issued their final credit releases for the Bank.

Now that the Bank has met all performance standards and has obtained its final credit

release, the Bank has entered its long-term management period. The Bank is covered by

a perpetual conservation easement restricting its uses and it will be managed and

maintained as wetland and fisheries habitat in perpetuity. An endowment provides

funding for monitoring, maintenance, and reporting of the Bank, which will occur

annually in perpetuity.

Doty Ravine Preserve

WES implemented a 20-acre riparian floodplain

restoration project on land owned by the Placer Land

Trust (PLT). As the lead applicant, PLT was approved

for funding by the Central Valley Regional Water

Quality Control Board (Water Board). The funding was

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from a supplement environmental project (SEP) proposed by a private developer and

agreed to by the Water Board as part of a settlement to compensate for the water quality

impacts.

The project included data collection related to soils, hydrology, vegetation, cultural

resources, topography, sensitive species utilization, and the preparation of a site-specific

operation and management (O&M) plan, restoration concept plan, grading plan,

monitoring program and implementation cost projections. WES oversaw the

construction implementation of the habitat restoration project including site collection

of seeds and cuttings for container stock, removal of non-native shrubs, and the

installation of pre-grown 5,700 native trees, shrubs and sedges. Also included was the

construction of a seasonal wetland in the floodplain to catch suspended soil particles

during flood events. The seasonal wetland was seeded with native grasses and forbs.

Dutchman Creek Conservation Bank Established in 2014 Dutchman Creek Conservation

Bank was approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service and the California Department of Fish and

Wildlife. The approval of the Bank adds an

additional 501-acres in Merced County, California,

for the protection of state and federally listed species

and their habitats. WES worked to establish the

Bank with the not-for-profit groups, California Rangeland Trust (Rangeland Trust) and

the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). Rangeland Trust holds the

Conservation Easement for the Bank and NFWF manages the endowment in full.

Situated in a priority movement corridor, Dutchman Creek is WES’s first bank to

provide credits for the federally-endangered and state-threatened San Joaquin kit fox

(Vulpes macrotis mutica). The site is also important for vernal pool species as it is included

in the Central Valley Region population of the California tiger salamander (Ambystoma

californiense) and the Grassland Ecological Area Core Recovery Unit for the San Joaquin

Valley Vernal Pool Region (Service, 2005). Further, the site incorporates a portion of

critical habitat for both the vernal pool tadpole shrimp (Lepidurus packardi) and vernal

pool fairy shrimp (Branchinecta lynchi). The Bank also provides habitat for vernal pool

conservancy fairy shrimp (Branchinecta conservatio) and the western spadefoot toad (Spea

hammondii).

In addition to supporting state and federal species, the Bank is a multi-benefit project

protecting natural hydrologic processes and provides habitat for numerous other animals

including bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos), California

ground squirrels (Spermophilus beecheyi), and sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis).

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Ferrari Ranch Preserve

WES worked with the Solano Transportation Authority

and Caltrans to implement a 285-acer conservation project

focusing on the protection of the California Red-legged

frog, Rana draytonii (CRLF) and Callippe silverspot

butterfly, Speyeria callippe callippe (CSB) habitat in Solano

County. The project provides a mitigation solution for

species impacts related to the I-80/680/12 interchange transportation project. The

property is located in a critical CRLF critical habitat area and identified by the Solano

Habitat Conservation Plan as highly valuable for both species.

As part of the project, WES secured the property and completed all entitlement

documents including; long and short term management plan, grazing plan, monitoring

plan, habitat enhancement plan, financial assurances, and permanent easements as

approved by the Conservation Easement holder, Solano Land Trust. WES also assisted

Caltrans in obtaining Endangered Species Act permits for the development CRLF and

CSB habitat restoration including potential CRLF breeding pond enhancement. In

addition, WES implemented all restoration work related the habitat enhancements.

WES continues to manage invasive weed species, monitor and maintain tree populations,

and document new species found on site, such as the burrowing owl.

Grasslands Mitigation Bank

The Grasslands Mitigation Bank in Merced County,

California was fully approved in 2015. The 281-acre

Bank will expand the last remaining sizeable

population of the Giant garter snake (Thamnophis gigas)

in the San Joaquin Valley through the creation of 180-

acres of managed marsh habitat immediately adjunct

to the largest remaining Giant garter snake population at the Volta Refuge.

In addition, the project restores 86-acres of agricultural fields back to dendritic

depressional seasonal wetlands, typical of the extensive ponded habitat historic to the

Grasslands region of the Central Valley. As of monitoring year two (2), all Giant garter

snake hydrology and vegetation performance standards have been met or exceeded for

this site.

The lands surrounding the site provide functional habitat value and connectivity between

the bank property and nearby conserved lands. Most of the adjacent land is either in

forage production for dairies or is managed as wetlands for migratory and resident

wetland-dependent species. The associated water supply ditches and drains provide

suitable habitat features for foraging Giant garter snake and expand the potential

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migration corridor. WES is conducting Giant garter snake population surveys and has

implemented a non-native invasive plant control plan using seasonal grazing cattle.

Mariner Vernal Pool Conservation Bank

Mariner Vernal Pool Conservation Bank is a 160-acre

area of rolling grasslands west of Lincoln, in Placer

County, California. The site has some of the highest

quality vernal pool habitat in the county, supporting

the presence of the federally-threatened vernal pool

fairy shrimp (Branchinecta lynchi). WES surveyors also

found the first known occurrence of the Conservancy

fairy shrimp (Branchinecta conservatio), a federally-endangered species, in Placer County,

which has redefined the understanding of the species’ range. Largely as a result of its

excellent working relationship with the USFWS, WES obtained approval of the

conservation bank in record time – 70 days. The property had been used for grazing

without modifications to its topography, and therefore has retained its naturally

contoured complex of vernal pools and grasslands. It is located adjacent to the

conserved 531-acre Rockwell property, resulting in a protected 691-acre vernal pool

complex.

Meridian Ranch Conservation Bank

This 485-acre Bank in Butte County was established in

April 2013. The project provides credits for impacts

to vernal pools, seasonal wetlands and Swainson’s

hawk foraging habitat. WES partnered with the

Northern California Regional Land Trust to hold the

Conservation Easement on the property and manage

the Compliance Monitoring Fund.

Prior to acquisition of the property by WES in 2008, it had been farmed in dry land

grains and used as a dairy for several decades. As a result of those farming practices

many of the vernal pools that dotted the property had either been destroyed or severely

degraded. After monitoring year five (5), these vernal pools have been restored,

enhancing long-term habitats for vernal pool fairy and tadpole shrimp.

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The Natomas Basin Conservancy, Site-Specific Management Plans

WES was selected by The Natomas Basin

Conservancy (TNBC) to prepare new and updated

site-specific management plans (SSMPs) for 29 parcels

of land, totaling 4,104 acers, acquired by TNBC. The

SSMPs included field reconnaissance to determine

existing habitat conditions for federal and state listed species (Specifically, Giant garter

snake and Swainson’s hawk), descriptions of the suitability for habitat restoration and

specific land management practices to maximize the species utilization, preparation of an

opinion of probable costs associated with implementing the management plan, and an

up-date to the long-term stewardship operations and maintenance program and budget.

Nicolaus Ranch VELB Conservation Bank Nicolaus Ranch VELB Conservation Bank is a 42.03-

acre site approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

(USFWS) to conserve and protect habitatfor the Valley

elderberry longhorn beetle (VELB) (Desmocerus californicus

dimorphus). Located in south Sacramento County, the

Bank is able to provide conservation credits for impacts

to VELB throughout California. The VELB is completely dependent on its host plant,

elderberry, which occurs in riparian and other woodland and scrub communities. The

site was chosen for its location adjoining to the Cosumnes River, compatible land uses of

the surrounding properties, presence of onsite riparian habitat, presence of an adjacent

mature riparian corridor, and site-specific qualities of soils, water availability and

topography that support rapid achievement of performance standards. WES staff

worked closely with the land owner and the USFWS in developing the Bank documents

for the site. Establishment of the Bank increased the amount of local conserved lands

and provides connectivity to other conservation areas to the southwest and northeast.

Oursan Ridge Conservation Bank

Oursan Ridge Conservation Bank (ORCB) occupies

430 acres in western Contra Costa County and is

owned by the East Bay Municipal District (EBMUD).

This Bank is approved to provide offsets for impacts

to the Alameda whipsnake (Masticophis lateralis) and

California red-legged frog (Rana draytonii) habitat.

Located along the Oursan Ridge in the Pinole Valley

watershed, the site is approximately five miles

southeast of the Town of Pinole. As much of the surrounding region is currently in high

density development, the ORCB serves to facilitate the protection of Alameda

whipsnake and California red-legged populations and high quality habitats in the area

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against ongoing development pressures in perpetuity. Thus, the Bank is assisting in

meeting defined regional recovery goals for both species.

WES, under contract with EBMUD, prepared both a prospectus and Conservation Bank Agreement, including: bank crediting, credit transfers, endowment funding analysis, and the land management plan.

Reclamation District 830 Mitigation Analysis and Plan, GIS Model In 2009, WES developed a 408,578-acre GIS based land

suitability analysis model to identify lands that have the

highest potential for restoration and mitigation within

the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. This project was

funded by the California Department of Water

Resources (DWR) Delta Levees Program, and the GIS

model will be used by DWR and the California

Department of Fish and Wildlife to evaluate future

mitigation proposals for their suitability. To develop the model, many data layers

(criteria) were compiled, processed, and evaluated for their applicability to restoration of

three habitat types: tidally-influenced freshwater marsh, shaded riverine aquatic habitat,

and riparian forest/scrub-shrub habitats. Criteria such as existing vegetation, elevation,

soils, proximity to existing habitat, adjacent land uses, zoning, proximity to existing tidal

channels were processed and combined to produce maps for each habitat type that

identify high-priority areas for restoration. The model emphasizes natural processes and

long-term sustainability in order to accommodate environmental changes such as sea-

level rise and climate change.

Sutter Basin Conservation Bank

This 429-acre Bank, located in Sutter County,

California, and has been restored by WES to provide

foraging and refugia habitat for the federally-listed

threatened Giant garter snake (Thamnophis gigas).

This site is a managed marsh habitat established by converting a degraded rice field into

six, independently managed slough-type features in the landscape. Water levels in each

cell are managed to optimize utilization for Giant garter snakes, including adjusting water

levels for young-of-the-year predation evasion.

In a 2011 article published by the USFWS Sacramento Office, the project was praised as

“one of the best examples of created habitat for the Giant garter snake in the

Sacramento Valley.” Since creation of the habitat, Giant garter snakes have been

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routinely recorded as using the habitat, with over 60 snakes documented over the last

three monitoring events.

Tule Red Tidal Restoration

Located in Suisun Marsh, this 400-acre+ project will

restore tidal marsh functions to the site in order to

provide food web and primary productivity support

to the adjacent Grizzly Bay. The project fulfills

requirements of USFWS, NMFS 2008 Biological

Opinions and CDFW Incidental Take Permit for the Ecorestore Initiative. Ecorestore is

a multifaceted effort to reach permit requirements of incidental catch in the federal and

state pumps along the delta. Tule Red is the first project to break ground under

Ecorestore with a tidal restoration goal of 8,000-acres. Because of its location at the

Grizzly Bay margin and its high resuspended sediment characteristics, the project site

provides an opportunity to restore extensive vegetated tidal wetlands that can

accommodate sea level rise as marsh expands seaward. Project features include creation

of a primary tidal channel, high marsh transition zone habitat levees along existing roads,

pilot backwater channels to optimize marsh plain inundation and residence time, and a

multi-year vegetation management regime prior to reintroduction of natural hydrology to

develop preferred vegetation community composition. Construction will continue

seasonally through fall of 2019.

Van Vleck Mitigation Bank

The Van Vleck Ranching and Resources Corporation

(VVRR) owns and operates several thousand acres of

ranch land in the vicinity of Rancho Murieta in

eastern Sacramento County. WES worked with the

VVRR to establish the 775-acre Van Vleck Mitigation

Bank on a portion of seven parcels, which is a subset

of the overall land owned and operated by this entity.

Before habitat development, the Bank’s grassland habitat already supported several

vernal pool complexes, drainage channels, seeps, and artificial ponds. Vernal pool fairy

shrimp, (Branchinecta lynchi) which have been documented in the pools on site, and

Swainson’s hawk (Buteo swainsoni) are known to forage and nest in the vicinity of the

Bank. The relatively low density of existing natural wetlands (3.7%), along with the site’s

natural mima-mound topography, provided an excellent opportunity for WES to

implement vernal pool creation in suitable non-wetland areas in proximity to the vernal

pool complexes.

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WES’s conservation activities have included mitigation value assessment and land

acquisition, planning, restoration design, biological surveys, agency meetings and site

visits, construction and design drawings, grading plans, vernal pool construction, and

land management/habitat stewardship.

This Bank was the first mitigation bank approved in northern California under the 2008

federal Wetlands Compensatory Mitigation Rule, a law established to increase mitigation

standards, and the new interagency mitigation banking template, designed to improve

coordination between agencies in establishing banks.

FLORIDA

Pensacola Bay Mitigation Bank

The 1,205-acre Pensacola Bay Mitigation Bank is located

in Santa Rosa County, Florida, contiguous to the Florida

Forever Acquisition Area called the Garcon Ecosystem

Preserve. The Garcon Peninsula contains some of the

best pitcher plant prairies remaining in Florida and the

Florida Forever Garcon Ecosystem project is charged

with protecting and expanding these prairies. The

project makes a significant contribution to the viability

of the Garcon project by increasing the size of the

preserve by approximately 15% and also contributes significant acres to the Gulf Coastal

Plain Ecosystem Partnership. The carnivorous White-topped pitcher plant (Sarracenia

leucophylla), a State endangered plant species, is located and protected within the

mitigation bank.

St. Marks Mitigation Bank

Designated as a “Group A Project” for acquisition

and restoration on the 2008 Florida Forever Priority

List, St. Marks Mitigation Bank is an ecological

diamond in the rough that WES is working to restore

to its primitive Florida splendor. This 1,450-acre

wetland site straddles the Jefferson and Wakulla

County lines in an ideal location adjacent to a vast

assemblage of conservation lands alongside the St. Marks and Aucilla River drainages.

Substantial portions of the site include areas identified as potential rare species habitat.

In addition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has listed the area as critical habitat for the

Frosted flatwoods salamander (Ambystoma cingulatum). This Bank serves as compensatory

mitigation for projects which impact flatwood, prairie, and hardwood wetlands near

Tallahassee, Florida.

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MISSISSIPPI

Chickasawhay Conservation Bank

Chickasawhay Conservation Bank, a 1,230-acre site in Greene

County, Mississippi, provides a place to both relocate displaced

Gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemu) and offer habitat

mitigation for the federally threatened Gopher tortoises in

Mississippi and western Alabama. It is the first Gopher tortoise

bank authorized with the USFWS. Since the Bank’s approval in

2009, the site has welcomed relocated Gopher tortoises and

currently supports a thriving population due to an intrinsic link

between the species and the longleaf pine ecosystem that is present on the property.

The longleaf pine habitat is biologically diverse and is considered by most to have

declined by approximately 97%. This decrease has contributed to a similar decline in the

Gopher tortoise population, reducing the western portion of its range by more than

80%. The Bank lies entirely within the threatened range of the species and is located on

each side of the Chickasawhay River, providing habitat to two major areas for the

species. In addition, the Bank’s location provides buffer habitat to adjacent federal and

State properties.

NEBRASKA

The Middle-Platte Rainwater Basin

Agricultural Mitigation Bank

(MRAMB) is the first mitigation

bank of its kind in Nebraska under

the new Natural Resources

Conservation Service Wetland

Mitigation Banking Program.

It is located on a portion of an approximately 320-acre site along the “Big Bend” reach

of the Platte River and is situated between the middle and south channel of this iconic

Great Plains waterway.

The site is within a region known to have high environmental values, located within the

Platte River Recovery Implementation Program area and in close proximity to numerous

other State and non-profit conservation properties.

MRAMB is a multi-benefit project in that in addition to preserving the environmental

functions of wetlands, such as flood control, sediment control, groundwater recharge,

and water quality, it provides habitat to wildlife, crane viewing opportunities, and

aesthetics.

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ROLES & QUALIFICATIONS: BUSINESS LEADERS

Greg Sutter, MS, Licensed L.A. Vice President and General Manager

Mr. Sutter is a co-founder of WES and serves as Vice President and General Manager

with oversight of land acquisition and stewardship. Mr. Sutter has a B.S. degree in

Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning from Cornell University and a M.S.

degree in Ecology from the University of California, Davis. He is also a past president

and board member of the Society for Ecological Restoration (California Chapter), and

has lectured at University of California, Davis, University of California, Berkeley, and

numerous technical conferences on habitat restoration. Mr. Sutter is also a regular

presenter on the mitigation banking process at the annual conference sponsored by the

National Mitigation Banking Association. Prior to joining WES, Mr. Sutter was

President of another west coast mitigation banking company; previous to entering the

mitigation banking field, Mr. Sutter was a principal at Jones & Stokes Associates, a

prominent environmental consulting firm based out of Sacramento CA. Mr. Sutter

served as the restoration analyst for the “South Bay Restoration Cost Study”, a US Fish

and Wildlife Service project that addressed mitigation feasibility.

Mr. Sutter has worked on ecosystem restoration planning and implementation

throughout the Central Valley and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta for over 25 years, and

is an acknowledged leader in mitigation land acquisition and effective bank

establishment. Under his leadership, projects are kept within the anticipated schedule

for implementation and within budgeted allocations. Mr. Sutter has actively participated

in the implementation of over 10,000 acres of habitat restoration, including the breach of

multiple levees to provide habitat enhancement, such as at the Cosumnes Floodplain

Mitigation Bank.

Greg Sutter also oversees planning and budgeting for WES projects, including capital

expenditures, labor and materials costs, and operations and maintenance expenditures.

Mr. Sutter has particular expertise in crafting equitable, multi-million dollar land

acquisitions for mitigation and conservation banks. Mr. Sutter works with landowners to

produce positive transactions ranging from fee title purchase to innovative partnerships,

in addition to directing due diligence efforts such as in-depth review and analysis of a

site’s ecological suitability and title constraints

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Greg DeYoung, MUP, AICP Vice President, Entitlement

Greg DeYoung is a founder and a Vice President for WES. Mr. DeYoung has 25 years

of experience in environmental review, permitting and planning, wetland mitigation, and

endangered species conservation. His background includes extensive experience

implementing environmental mitigation, including the permitting of over 25 mitigation

and conservation banks and large-scale mitigation projects in California, Washington,

and Alaska.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. DeYoung was a Senior Vice President at Wildlands, Inc. In

this capacity, he served as Board of Directors member and company officer, he directed

the Conservation Planning Team responsible for permits and entitlements, and he

assisted in the establishment and management of four regional offices. Mr. DeYoung

permitted numerous wetland and endangered species banks, including several industry

milestones, such as the first wetland mitigation bank with fully authorized special-status

fish credits and the first conservation banks for selected threatened and endangered

species.

Mr. DeYoung co-founded and served as Principal for Planning Concepts, where he

authored or managed the preparation of the general plans for the City of Galt and the

County of Sierra, as well as approximately 50 environmental review documents

addressing major public and private projects. Mr. DeYoung has also served as Director

for two non-profit organizations, the Nevada County Land Trust and the Wildlife

Heritage Foundation.

Mr. DeYoung holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Biology from the

University of California, Santa Barbara and a Masters in Urban Planning from the

California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Mr. DeYoung is a member of the

American Planning Association and the American Institute of Certified Planners.

Travis Hemmen, MSEL Vice President, Business Acquisition

Travis Hemmen directs the business and market development for WES. Mr. Hemmen

coordinates with private and public clients on project specific mitigation and manages

sales for existing bank credits. Mr. Hemmen identifies potential site acquisitions and

analyzes market information to ensure mitigation bank viability. Mr. Hemmen leads

both regulatory and political efforts that support WES projects and issues affecting the

habitat banking industry. He is a co-chair of the Land Use Natural Resources committee

for the Sacramento Metro Chamber that manages the “cap-to-cap” lobbying trip to

Washington D.C. to meet with headquarter and senior staff at federal agencies, including

P a g e | 19

the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish &

Wildlife Services, and elected officials.

Mr. Hemmen has a Bachelor of Arts in Biology with an emphasis in Ethics from the

University of Northern Iowa, and a Master of Environmental Law and Policy with an

emphasis in Alternative Dispute Resolution from Vermont Law School.

Steve Moore, MBA Vice President, Finance and Administration

Mr. Moore leads the business planning and financial reporting for WES and for its

projects in California, Colorado and the Southeastern United States. Mr. Moore

coordinates with Corporate Headquarters on company and project performance, capital

availability and surety issues.

Mr. Moore has over 25 years of experience in senior management for a variety of land

development and home building enterprises throughout Northern California and

Nevada. He is past president of the Building Industry Association in San Joaquin County

California and is a life director of the California Building Industry Association. He

earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Rensselaer Polytechnic

Institute and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Michigan.

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ROLES & QUALIFICATIONS: PROCESS LEADERS

Marshall Cook, BL Land Acquisition Manager

Marshall Cook, Land Acquisition Manager, oversees the purchasing of property and

mitigation rights for all three (3) WES regions. Some of those duties include contacting

landowners, negotiating transactions and escorting the process through close of escrow.

Additionally, Mr. Cook helps the marketing effort for WES and assists clients with

meeting their mitigation requirements through credit sales.

Mr. Cook has purchased property or mitigation rights for projects related to the

California High Speed Rail, The Ecorestore Initiative in Suisun Marsh habitat for tidal

restoration, wind projects in the Altamont Pass of California, and endangered species

conservation work in the Bay Area. He has managed over 20,000 acres of land and

habitat including 500 acres at Lazy K Ranch, 503 acres at Dutchman Creek

Conservation, 85 acres at Koopmann Ranch Preserve, and 5,600 acres at Merced County

Ranch. Mr. Cook works with government agencies, consultants, and engineers to ensure

the most economically viable plans for clients.

Prior to his time at WES, Mr. Cook was the Transactional Director for the California

Rangeland Trust, where he directed all real estate transactions and oversaw

communication with landowners, attorneys, and environmental consultants. Marshall

was also an associate attorney in the real estate department of McDonough Holland &

Allen, PC in Sacramento. Marshall earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of the

Pacific, McGeorge School of Law and Bachelor of Science in Marketing from

Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah. Prior to beginning his secondary education,

Marshall served in the United States Army, 3rd Infantry Regiment, ‘The Old Guard,’ at

Fort Meyer, Arlington, Virginia.

Matt Gause, BS Ecological Resources and Land Stewardship Director

Mr. Gause is our Ecological Resources and Land Stewardship Director with over 16

years of experience as a land manager with wetland and habitat related projects on the

Sacramento River, Cosumnes River Preserve, and within the Sacramento San Joaquin

River Delta, Staten Island, Dead Horse Island, Andrus Island, McCormick-Williamson

Tract, Holland Tract, Liberty Island, Jersey Island, and Kimball Island. He has also

been heavily involved in a handful of floodplain projects at the Suisun Marsh, Placer

County, Yolo County, Merced County, the Consumnes Floodplain, Colusa, and Sutter

County. He has conducted vegetation mapping and remote wetland delineation on over

160,000 acres of former tidal baylands surrounding the San Francisco and San Pablo

P a g e | 21

Bays in California. His work was performed to identify suitable mitigation sites for the

restoration of both tidal and intertidal habitats that would have been impacted by the

proposed expansion of the San Francisco International Airport (SFO). Mr. Gause

identifies and evaluates the biological and ecological suitability of candidate properties

for conservation and/or restoration throughout California. Mr. Gause also develops

and implements long-term land management and monitoring strategies for mitigation

and conservation banks. Further, he manages biological technical staff through all

phases of project development and operation.

Mr. Gause’s extensive regulatory experience was developed through involvement in

numerous private and public sector projects requiring clearances or approvals under the

California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA), Clean Water Act, and federal Endangered Species Act. His primary area of

responsibility was assessing project related effects on biological resources including rare,

threatened, or endangered species and sensitive natural habitats such as wetlands.

Mr. Gause received a Bachelor of Science in Botany from the University of California at

Davis.

Randee Herford, BS Accountant

Randee Herford assists the finance manager in business planning and financial reporting

for WES. She is a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

Prior to joining WES she spent over four (4) years in public accounting as an external

auditor specializing in compliance audits, including governmental entities, non-profits

and employee benefit plans.

She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Accountancy from California State

University of Sacramento, where she graduated summa cum laude.

Lydia Holland, BS Marketing Coordinator

Lydia Holland is the Marketing Coordinator for WES with over five years of experience

in the environmental marketing industry. In her position, Mrs. Holland manages the

planning and organization of all marketing efforts and outreach for WES’s, Rocky

Mountain, Southeast, and Western regions. She is responsible for the implementation of

all internal and external marketing and communication projects, including proposal

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development, event coordination, media relations, branding, advertising, website

development and sales support.

Mrs. Holland joined WES in 2008 as a student intern on the Design/Construction team.

During that time, she contributed to many key projects including the construction of

Van Vleck Mitigation Bank and coordination of the restoration planting and design at

Cosumnes Floodplain Mitigation Bank. Prior to accepting the role as Marketing

Coordinator, Mrs. Holland was a sales associate for WES.

Mrs. Holland received her Bachelor of Science degree in Landscape Architecture with a

minor in Environmental Horticulture from the University of California, Davis. She is

currently an active member of the Society for Marketing Professional Services,

Sacramento.

Jeff Mathews, MPA Senior Business Development Director

Mr. Mathews serves as Senior Business Development Director for WES. He has over 25

years of experience in the field of land appraisal, acquisition, utility relocation and project

management for public transportation projects, including the acquisition of habitat

values needed prior to the issuance of regulatory permits.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. Mathews served as Deputy Director and Acting Director of

Real Property for the California High-Speed Rail Authority until January 2018.

Mr. Mathews has extensive knowledge of land use planning and transportation planning,

including over eight years of experience as a city and county planning commissioner.

This experience helps guide the strategic development of mitigation projects to serve a

variety of client needs.

He is past co-chair of the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce Cap-to-Cap

Transportation team and leads an annual mission to Washington, D.C., advocating for

federal support of federal transportation projects in the Sacramento Region.

Mr. Mathews also guides the market research effort for WES including a systematic

review of public and private development projects within our bank service areas and

monitors regional development trends. Mr. Mathews has a Bachelor of Arts degree in

Social Science and a Master of Public Administration degree from California State

University, Chico.

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ROLES & QUALIFICATIONS: ROCKY MOUNTAIN REGION

Lucy Harrington, BS Regional Director

Lucy Harrington is a Colorado native and the Regional Director for the Rocky Mountain

Region. In her position, she oversees site feasibility analysis and selection, bank

entitlement, credit sales, land stewardship, and long-range planning.

Prior to joining WES, Ms. Harrington worked as a federal employee for nine years for a

variety of agencies throughout the western U.S. including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Bureau of Land Management,

the Bureau of Reclamations and the U.S. Forest Service. Through this experience she

gained a solid understanding of both regulations and field and restoration techniques.

She also served as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s representative on the Interagency

Review Team (IRT) in the San Francisco Bay region.

Ms. Harrington graduated from Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado,

with double majors in Wildlife Biology and Spanish Languages and Literature. She also

holds a certificate from the School for International Training for Comparative Ecology

(Ecuador). Ms. Harrington has a 10(a)(1)(a) Scientific Collecting permit for the

California Red-legged frog (Rana draytonii) and has served as president and vice president

of the Sacramento-Shasta chapter of The Wildlife Society.

Carla DeMasters GIS Analyst/Restoration Ecologist

Carla DeMasters is a GIS Analyst/Restoration Ecologist in the Rocky Mountain Region.

She has over 13 years of experience in GIS, spatial data analysis, quantitative vegetation

studies, vegetation mapping, plant ecology, restoration ecology and wetlands. Prior to

joining WES, she worked primarily in the environmental consulting industry, where she

provided GIS support and ecology expertise for National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA) and energy industry projects and led several large scale wetland delineation and

permitting projects in accordance with Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. Additionally,

Ms. DeMasters has provided technical expertise and oversight for riparian restoration

projects as a Graduate Research Assistant at the Denver Botanic Gardens. - rough over a

decade of experience conducting ecological field studies for large scale mining projects

throughout the western U.S., she has become highly skilled in the identification of native

plants of the Great Plains, Southern Rocky Mountains, Colorado Plateau and Central

Basin and Range regions.

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Ms. DeMasters has a Master’s degree in Geography with a focus on Biogeography and

GIS from the University of Colorado Boulder and has a second Master’s degree in

Biology with a focus on Restoration Ecology from the University of Colorado Denver.

Ms. DeMasters is a Certified Wetland Professional in Training (WPIT) with the Society

of Wetland Scientists. She has also served on the Program Committee for the Central

Rockies Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration conference. She frequently

provides training in plant identification for the Colorado Native Plant Society.

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ROLES & QUALIFICATIONS: SOUTHEAST REGION

John Wigginton, Ph.D., PWS, CERP Regional Director

John Wigginton is the Director for the Southeast Region, where he leads a motivated

and dedicated team of accomplished professionals. His duties include site feasibility

analysis and selection, Interagency Review Team interaction, landowner negotiations,

budgeting, long-range planning, process management, and team management. Prior to

joining WES, he was employed for six and a half years as wetland ecologist for an

engineering consulting firm in Montgomery, Alabama. He led the firm’s mitigation

banking efforts, developing the first stream mitigation bank in Alabama, and the first

mitigation banks in both the Montgomery and Birmingham, Alabama watersheds.

In addition, John specializes in: wetland delineations, hydric soil determinations, Federal

and State permitting, strategies for mitigation of stream and wetland impacts, threatened

and endangered species surveys, stream assessment for natural channel design and

restoration, and environmental assessments.

John is a certified Professional Wetland Scientist and is the first person in Alabama to

receive Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner status from the Society of

Ecological Restoration. He received his PhD in Forest Ecology from the Auburn

University School of Forestry. His dissertation investigated the effects of natural

succession and restoration on soil organic matter formation and sequestration of

thermally impacted floodplain forests at the U.S. Department of Energy Savannah River

Site in South Carolina. He has a Master of Science in Wetland Studies from the

University of Florida’s Center for Wetlands.

Kelly Sands, MS Business Development Manager

Kelly Sands is a Business Development Manager for the Southeast Region. Her primary

responsibilities include managing sales and marketing within WES’s existing southeast

markets, including credit sales from WES’s nine approved mitigation and conservation

banks, and developing new business and markets. Ms. Sands regularly performs outreach

with public and private partners as part of this role.

Prior to joining WES in 2015, Ms. Sands worked for an environmental consulting firm in

San Rafael, California and Atlanta, Georgia and also specialized in credit sales

management and marketing, mitigation bank entitlement, market analysis and feasibility

studies. She has a decade of experience working across all areas of the mitigation and

P a g e | 26

conservation banking industry in multiple regions. Ms. Sands has been successful at

identifying and developing new markets within emerging regulatory programs. She has

also created spatial models for mitigation bank site selection and prepared numerous

feasibility studies on potential projects.

With the Environmental Policy Award from the Odum School of Ecology at the

University of Georgia to her credit, she received her Master of Science degree in

Conservation Ecology and Sustainable Development. Her thesis was on incorporating a

watershed approach into compensatory mitigation. Ms. Sands received her Bachelor of

Science degree in Biology, with a minor in Chemistry, from Oglethorpe University in

Atlanta, Georgia. Ms. Sands attended the 2011 Property and Environment Research

Center’s Enviropreneur Institute and has dedicated her career to promoting market-

based solutions for natural resource conservation.

Sean McGary, BS, PWS Entitlement Manager

Sean McGary is the Entitlement Manager for the Southeast Region. Mr. McGary

specializes in mitigation bank entitlement and compliance, working closely with regional

interagency review teams. Sean has experience in designing and monitoring stream and

wetland mitigation banks in the southeast and Midwest United States. Mr. McGary has

experience in jurisdictional wetland delineations, stream assessments for natural in-

channel design including riparian buffer restoration, construction oversight, and NEPA

documentation.

Additionally, he has conducted surveys for federally listed threatened and endangered

species such as Eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon corais couperi), Gopher tortoise (Gopherus

polyphemu), Red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis), Green pitcher plant (Sarracenia

oreophila), Florida panther (Puma concolor coryi), Florida scrub jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens) and

many other species in the Southeastern United States.

Originally from Ft. Myers, Florida, he received his Bachelor of Science degree in

Environmental Science from the University of Florida. Mr. McGary is a member of the

Society of Wetland Scientists, Society of Ecological Restoration, Association of State

Wetland Managers, Florida Association of Environmental Professionals, and the

Tennessee Association of Environmental Professionals. Prior to joining WES, Mr.

McGary served as an ecologist/project scientist for both the private and public sectors

including Passarella and Associates in Ft. Myers, Florida, Georgia Department of

Transportation in Atlanta, Georgia and Hayes, Seay, Mattern, and Mattern in Raleigh,

North Carolina.

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Jason Martin, RF, CPBM Land Stewardship Manager

Jason Martin, Land Stewardship Manager, has worked in several capacities of land

management focused towards conservation including conservation easement

administration, stream and wetland mitigation, endangered species management, and

habitat restoration. He has prepared and implemented management strategies on private

lands to restore and maintain populations of red-cockaded woodpecker, gopher tortoise,

longleaf pine, American chaffseed, and remnant wild quail populations in Alabama. He

has worked with private landowners to implement multiple use management plans

involving timber harvests, farming, habitat restoration, mitigation, and commercial

hunting, among others.

Mr. Martin has extensive experience using prescribed fire as a land management tool,

particularly for wildlife habitat and longleaf pine restoration. He has worked with teams

of agency and private officials to implement management strategies with multiple uses

focused towards restoration of native habitats and land conservation. He also has

experience with stream construction oversight, BMP monitoring, and GPS surveying of

earthwork to ensure projects are being built to specification. Mr. Martin has extensive

experience using GPS and GIS systems for data management, map creation, and site

management and analysis.

Mr. Martin received his Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry from Auburn University

with an emphasis in land management. He is an Alabama Registered Forester and

Certified Prescribed Burn Manager.

Seth Hunt, MS Associate Biologist

Seth Hunt is an Associate Biologist whose primary responsibilities are monitoring, land

management, and GIS for the Southeast WES Banks. He received his Bachelor of

Science in Forestry at Auburn University in 2014 and his Master of Science in Forestry at

Auburn University in 2016. His thesis pertained to landownership changes, harvest

behavior, and forest history in west-central Alabama with a heavy focus in GIS and

remote sensing applications. Additionally, he worked in the Longleaf Stand Dynamics

Lab where he studied prescribed fire effects, silviculture, and habitat management of

longleaf pine, oak-pine, and hardwood forest ecosystems.

Seth served as a Graduate Teaching Assistant for natural resources sampling, forest

measurements, prescribed fire and as a Teaching Assistant for the forestry summer camp

at the Solon Dixon Forestry Education Center. He is still actively engaged with various

forestry and wildlife extension and outreach programs associated with Auburn University

P a g e | 28

within Alabama. Prior to working with WES, Seth worked with Fish and Wildlife

Service in the South Arkansas National Wildlife Refuge Complex in habitat management.

Andrew Parsons, BS Lead Field Biologist

Andrew Parsons is the Lead Field Biologist for the Southeast office. Mr. Parsons is a

native of Huntsville, Alabama. He grew up on a small farm in rural north Alabama and

has worked in agriculture and land management most of his life. Mr. Parsons received a

Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Biology from Auburn University’s School of

Forestry and Wildlife Sciences. While obtaining his degree, he worked for the Auburn

University School of Forestry and Wildlife Science assisting with wetland

biogeochemistry research around the southeast.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. Parsons worked and managed horse ranches in California,

Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Texas. Mr. Parsons has over a decade of

natural resource management experience including research experience in the Congaree

Swamp of South Carolina and serving as a lead wrangler at Yellowstone National Park in

Wyoming.

Casey Rigsby, BS Mitigation Markets Representative

Casey Rigsby is the Mitigation Markets Representative in the Southeast Regional office.

His primary responsibilities include planning and conducting outreach in Alabama to

assist WES clients with meeting their mitigation requirements. Mr. Rigsby performs

marketing activities for existing banks, assists with research and feasibility of new

markets, handles tracking of credit ledgers, long-term revenue planning and manages the

transfer of credit sales.

Prior to joining WES in 2016 he specialized in business development and account

management in the Auburn, AL area. He has almost a decade of experience in sales,

networking, building relationships, and maintaining business portfolios. Casey’s working

background, as well as education, was primarily focused in the accounting, supply chain,

and banking capacities. Mr. Rigsby received his Bachelor of Science in Business

Administration from Auburn University with a concentration in Accounting and Supply

Chain Management.

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Kristen Selikoff, MA GIS Analyst

Kristen Selikoff is the GIS Analyst for Southeast Regional office. Ms. Selikoff’s skills

have been highly developed over her years of working in the profession. After starting

her career in the Archaeology field, Ms. Selikoff received her Master of Arts in Applied

Geography at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro where she then worked in

academia. Her GIS roots were further established by working in local and regional

government capacities as an analyst and manager, while also gaining experience in the

planning, land conservation, and watershed studies fields.

Ms. Selikoff brought her technical skills back home to Alabama in 2008, where she

continues to provide the full range of GIS data analysis, design, and management. Her

talents range from GPS database design and collection, open source and cloud based

GIS application creation, to high volume cartographic production, as well as field

research support. Ms. Selikoff has been involved in every facet of managing and

implementing a GIS system; this has ranged from budgeting departmental costs and

procurements, personnel management and instruction, to project planning and GIS

analysis and production.

Brent Shaver, RF Conservation Planner

Brent Shaver is Conservation Planner for our Southeast Regional office where he

oversees and develops mitigation banking projects: including planning, execution, and

tracking of new wetlands and conservation mitigation project approvals. He also assists

with regional compliance tracking of approved mitigation projects.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. Shaver was Director of Forest Management for The Nature

Conservancy in Alabama where he directed all aspects of forest management across

Alabama and into northwest Florida. Mr. Shaver has extensive knowledge of ecological

forest management, longleaf pine ecosystem restoration, prescribed fire management,

and multi-use restoration techniques on private and public lands. Mr. Shaver is

experienced in NPDES and NEPA planning, Phase I Environmental Site Assessments,

endangered species surveys, and real estate transactions.

He earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s in Forestry from Auburn University where his

graduate work focused on assisting non-industrial private forest landowners in

understanding the functions and values of forested wetlands, and the ecological and legal

ramifications of silvicultural operations in those areas. Brent is a Registered Forester in

Alabama and Georgia, and is a Certified Prescribed Burn Manager. Brent has been a

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member of the Society of American Foresters since 1998, formerly serving as the Jubilee

Chapter Chair and Chair of the Alabama Division.

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ROLES & QUALIFICATIONS: WESTERN REGION

Hal Holland, BS Regional Director

Mr. Holland is the Regional Director for the Western Region office. In this role, Mr.

Holland is responsible for the planning, entitlement and compliance of mitigation and

conservation properties as well as overseeing project management and scheduling,

entitlement document preparation (e.g., prospectus and mitigation Bank instrument), and

Interagency Review Team approval processing. Mr. Holland’s experience includes

endowment fund budget preparation, third-party conservation easement holder

negotiation, credit methodology justification, service area analysis, biological review, and

CEQA/NEPA compliance.

Mr. Holland has conducted numerous surveys for State and federally listed threatened

and endangered species, and he has extensive experience with Clean Water Act, Section

404 and 401 permitting. Mr. Holland has a Bachelor of Science degree in Ecology,

Behavior, and Evolution from the University of California at San Diego.

Robert Capriola, MS Design, Entitlement and Construction Manager

Mr. Capriola is the Design, Entitlement and Construction Manager for the Western

Regional office. Mr. Capriola focuses on feasibility analyses for the establishment of

banks, permittee-responsible mitigation, document preparation, and interacting with

members of the Interagency Review Teams for project development and approval. He

also assists in the evaluation of properties for restoration opportunities, development of

technical baseline studies, restoration feasibility analyses, and providing guidance on

permitting and construction.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. Capriola worked for eleven years with the California

Waterfowl Association (CWA). While at CWA, Capriola developed many successful

proposals and managed several multi-million dollar grants for habitat improvement

feasibility studies, engineering designs, and permitting and construction of wetland and

fisheries projects.

Mr. Capriola has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Cultural Anthropology and a Master of

Science in Natural Resources, both from the California State University at Humboldt.

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Tara Collins, BS Ecological Resources Manager

Tara Collins is Ecological Resources Manager for the Western Region office. Her

primary responsibilities include coordinating with various state and federal agencies to

establish, permit, and manage properties proposed for new conservation and/or

mitigation banks throughout California.

Prior to joining WES in 2015, Ms. Collins worked for an environmental consulting firm

in the Sacramento area and specialized in Clean Water Act Section 404 mitigation

monitoring and compliance. She has a unique combination of biological fieldwork and

project management experience, including entitlement and monitoring of private

mitigation banks; open space preserve management; and complex regulatory permitting

associated with residential and commercial development, transportation, and mining

projects. Ms. Collins has prepared and implemented mitigation monitoring plans and

long-term management plans in a variety of restored and preserved habitats throughout

California, including vernal pools, seasonal marshes, oak woodlands, Valley elderberry

longhorn beetle habitat, riparian corridors, and floodplains.

Ms. Collins received her Bachelor of Science degree in Botany from Humboldt State

University in Arcata, California.

Sarah Correa, BS Sales and Marketing Manager

Sarah Correa is the Sales and Marketing Manager working to grow business and market

development for WES. Mrs. Correa coordinates with private and public clients on

project specific mitigation and manages sales for existing bank credits. Mrs. Correa

identifies potential site acquisitions and analyzes market information to ensure mitigation

bank viability.

Prior to joining WES, Sarah worked with the California Department of Transportation

as an Associate Environmental Planner in District 10. In this position, Sarah

participated in transportation system planning and project development by organizing

environmental analysis of proposed projects and modal and design alternatives to

identify environmental impacts of transportation systems, corridors and projects while

formulating measures to mitigate impacts in compliance with all applicable local, state,

and federal laws, regulations, and policies.

Mrs. Correa received her Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from

University of Phoenix in Sacramento, California.

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Matt Coyle, BS Land Stewardship Manager

Matt Coyle is our Land Stewardship Manager with over 18 years of experience with

wetland and endangered species habitat evaluation, restoration, and management in

California and Oregon. His primary responsibilities include managing and coordinating

the land management activities that occur on the over 10,000 acres of conservation

and/or mitigation lands throughout California which WES owns. Mr. Coyle also

conducts vegetation monitoring, topographic surveys, and biological surveys in vernal

pool landscapes and other wetland types for mitigation and conservation projects. He

has conducted wetland delineations on large scale properties, collected and supervised

the collection of field data and produced biological reports and site condition maps

using GIS, and has directly managed the implementation of over 30 large scale

restoration projects ranging from vernal pool creation to tidal marsh restoration. Matt

also has his Section 10(A)1(A) USFWS recovery permit which gives him the regulatory

permission to conduct wet season surveys for listed vernal pool crustaceans and

California tiger salamanders.

Matt received his Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry and Natural Resources

Management from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. Prior to

joining WES, Matt worked for several habitat restoration firms in the Sacramento region

which focused on mitigation banking and habitat restoration implementation. His love

of wild landscapes and outdoor recreation is what drew him to his career.

Kim Erickson, BS Restoration Ecologist

Kim Erickson, Restoration Ecologist, specializes in mitigation and conservation bank

entitlement and permittee-responsible mitigation. Ms. Erickson has extensive experience

working with various agencies including U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service and California Department of Fish and Wildlife. She also has years of

experience working for both the private and public sectors including residential and

commercial developers and engineers in the Central Valley. Kim has over 20 years of

experience in environmental documentation and permitting and works closely with

clients and resource agencies to develop quality mitigation solutions.

Kim received her Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Planning and

Management from the University of California, Davis. Ms. Erickson is a member of the

Association of Environmental Professionals and The Wildlife Society.

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Prior to joining WES, Ms. Erickson served as a project manager and/or principal in

charge on major development and infrastructure projects with extensive local, state and

federal review and approvals.

Kate Gazzo, BS, MEM Conservation Planner

Kate Gazzo serves as a Conservation Planner for the Western Region office. She

currently works to conserve priority wetland and species habitat for a permittee-

responsible large infrastructure project located in California. Kate also entitles

conservation and mitigation banks. Her responsibilities include: performing diligence for

potential property acquisitions, project permitting and agency coordination, and

mitigation and conservation project planning. Kate has worked on a variety of

environmental projects throughout the U.S. for private and public firms. Most recently

Kate worked as a biologist assisting in natural resource planning including biological

surveys for transportation projects in California. Kate worked as an ecologist for an

ecological restoration and design firm where she performed ecological assessments to

calculate habitat loss and improve ecological function through restoration design. As an

ecologist, she has studied water quality and watershed health issues, specifically,

quantifying ecological risk associated with historical contamination, performing urban

and agricultural water quality studies, and researching land conservation as a means to

improve water quality downstream.

Kate graduated from the University of San Francisco with a Master’s in Environmental

Management. She has a Bachelor’s in Environmental Studies and a minor in Biology

from Florida Gulf Coast University.

Chris Holland, BS Restoration Designer

Chris Holland is a Restoration Designer and is involved in both Construction

Management and Computer Aided Design (CAD). As a restoration designer, Mr.

Holland uses multiple programs and design tools including Auto Cad, to produce the

construction documents necessary to obtain grading permits. Throughout the design

process, each site is analyzed and evaluated to maximize the habitats’ potential, and Mr.

Holland provides the data which team members use to finalize a projects design.

Once the design is finalized and construction phase begins, Mr. Holland provides on-

site design solutions and inspection of the earthwork using GPS and Real-Time

Kinematic (RTK) survey to ensure projects are being built to specification.

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Additional on-site responsibilities that Mr. Holland oversees include biological

monitoring to comply with federal, State and local permitting, as well as storm water

pollution prevention plans (SWPPP). This biological monitoring has included Giant

garter snake, Swainson’s hawk, Valley elderberry longhorn beetle and ground-nesting

birds.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. Holland was a Senior Designer with The HLA Group and

helped prepare construction documents for master planned communities, regional parks

and other large scale urban projects. He obtained a Bachelor of Science, Landscape

Architecture degree from Arizona State University.

Michael Lozano, BA GIS Analyst

Mr. Lozano is a GIS Analyst and Cartographer with 29 years of experience. His

responsibilities in the Western Regional office include Enterprise Geodatabase

Management, developing Land Evaluation and Site Assessment (LESA) GIS models and

Habitat Suitability Index (HIS) GIS models and preparing cartographic maps to present

analysis results or for use in permit applications. Mr. Lozano’s skills include developing

innovative methods using GPS, AutoCad and ESRI GIS software to prepare highly

accurate and detailed map layers.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. Lozano worked for PG&E (Land Department), Enron O&G

(EOG), Jones & Stokes Associates and A. Teichert & Son, Aggregate Resource

Development (ATS) performing surveying and land mapping tasks, data acquisition,

geodatabase management and site suitability analysis.

Mr. Lozano attended California State University, Sacramento where he received a

Bachelor of Arts in Geography in 1986 with emphasis on Land Use Planning, including

Land Surveying coursework in the Department of Engineering.

Chris McColl, MS GIS Analyst / Conservation Planner

Chris McColl is a Conservation Planner/GIS Analyst in the entitlement process for the

Western Regional Office. His primary responsibilities include identification of potential

properties for new conservation and/or mitigation banks, implementation of online GIS

services and mobile field data collection systems, species habitat model development,

data management and aerial photo interpretation. Chris brings 15 years of experience

with GIS technologies that has focused on the development of online mapping

applications, implementation of ESRI Collector mobile application, application of drone

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technology, geodatabase development and management, development of habitat

suitability models, environmental impact analysis, 404 wetland delineation, rapid

ecological assessments, integration of GIS technologies with hydrologic, groundwater,

wildfire, and land-use forecasting models, hydrologic and groundwater modeling, as well

as cartographic design. Chris has broad experience within the Central Valley working on

projects at the regional and state scale including the Butte County Regional Plan, Yolo

County Natural Heritage Program, the Bay-Delta Conservation Plan, Sierra Nevada

Conservation Blueprint, Bird Returns Conservation Program and Statewide Rangeland

Assessment.

Chris received his Bachelor of Environmental Science degree in geography from the

University of Guelph and a Master’s of Science degree in Natural Resource Management

from Central Washington University. Additionally, he received an advanced diploma in

GIS systems from the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

Mark Noyes, MS Associate Project Planner

Mark Noyes is an associate project planner in the entitlement division for the Western

Regional office. Mr. Noyes is responsible for the preparation and review of documents

supporting mitigation site establishment. In addition, he interacts with and coordinates

meetings for regulatory agency staff, conducts baseline environmental studies, provides

design input for restoration projects, and assists with wildlife and plant surveys.

Prior to joining WES, Mr. Noyes worked for 10 years in the ecological restoration

industry as a restoration technician at a mining company for three years, a research

assistant and graduate student researcher for 4 years, and a biology consultant for three

years. Mr. Noyes uses his prior experience in restoration ecology and site monitoring

when developing habitat success criteria and performance standards, as well as writing

management plans for mitigation banks and permittee-responsible mitigation sites.

Mr. Noyes has a Bachelor of Science degree in Biological Science and a Master of

Science degree in Restoration Ecology from the University of California at Davis.

Beth Parvis, MS Biological Monitoring Coordinator

Beth Parvis is the Biological Monitoring Coordinator in the land stewardship division for

the Western Regional office. She is responsible for coordinating annual land

management and land stewardship tasks, conducting monitoring and management

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activities, and preparing annual monitoring reports for mitigation/conservation banks

and permittee responsible mitigation projects.

Prior to joining WES, Beth was an Environmental Scientist for the Plant Health and Pest

Prevention Services Division of the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

She has also served as a scientific aide for the California Department of Fish and

Wildlife. Beth received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and minor in

Environmental Studies from UC San Diego and her Master of Science degree in

Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation from CSU Sacramento. Her thesis investigated

sexual dimorphism and ontogeny in tule perch (Hysterocarpus traskii traskii).

Tina Rosá, BS Conservation Planner

Tina Rosá is the Conservation Planner in the entitlement division. Ms. Rosá works on

preparing, reviewing and editing Bank documents, conducting research for a variety of

projects and is currently the project manager for WES’s Markham Ravine Mitigation

Bank and one of the High Speed Rail Mitigation Properties.

Prior to joining WES, Ms. Rosá worked for 12 years in the Title and Escrow industry,

where she served six (6) years as an Escrow Officer. Ms. Rosá was responsible for the

review and analysis of preliminary title reports, recorded title exceptions and legal parcel

descriptions. Ms. Rosá worked closely with clients, third parties, county agencies and

company staff to resolve title issues and insure the on time and accurate preparation and

recording of legal documents. At WES, Ms. Rosá’s escrow experience is utilized in

reviewing title reports and preparation of agency required documents explaining

recorded exceptions, easements and other documents of record that affect real property.

Ms. Rosá has a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from California

State University Sacramento.

Greg Webber, BS Restoration Designer

Greg Webber is a Restoration Designer within the Design and Construction

Management process for the Western Regional office. With technical experience in a

variety of Cad programs, GIS and graphic design programs, Mr. Webber is responsible

for the creation and revision of design documents along all phases of the design

development process. He is also able to assist with field data collection in both design

reconnaissance and site monitoring capacities.

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Prior to joining WES, Mr. Webber worked as a tradesman in a variety of fields including

Agriculture, Landscape Management and Electrical Construction. Greg received his

Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture with a minor in Environmental

Horticulture from University of California, Davis, where he was a member of ASLA. He

also worked as a student intern for the Putah Creek Riparian Reserve, a 640-acre

ecosystem managed for wildlife protection, teaching and research on the University of

California, Davis campus.

Mark Young, MLA, Licensed L.A. Habitat Restoration and Construction

Mark Young is a licensed landscape architect with 28 years of experience in

environmental planning, and habitat and wetland restoration design. Mr. Young is the

manager for restoration design and construction at WES. This experience has allowed

the development and implementation of environmentally sensitive and realistic solutions

that comply with permit requirements. Mr. Young has conducted wetland delineations,

prepared wetland and stream rehabilitation and mitigation design plans, habitat

mitigation and monitoring plans. He has also coordinated environmental elements for

permitting project documentation and overseen the preparation and implementation of

storm water pollution prevention plans.

Mr. Young has led interdisciplinary teams on project design from a few acres to over 500

acres in size. He has managed the design and implementation on multi-million dollar

mitigation projects. This has included design development (concept through

construction drawings) and construction management on over 3,200 acres. This work

has given him an opportunity to communicate with federal and State resource agencies

in the Western United States, including projects in the Delta region and greater Central

Valley.

Mr. Young has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, from The

Evergreen State College, and a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of

Washington.