Environmental Services

Lahontan GeoScience consultants have worked on numerous projects related to environmental regulations and permitting. The types of environmental complicance projects LGS staff have experience in include:

• Phase I, II and III Environmental Audits
• Environmental Impact Statements (NEPA)
• Environmental Impact Reports (CEQA)
• Environmental Assessments (EA)s
• RI/FS  Remediation and Feasibility Studies
• Solid and Hazardous Waste
• Superfund Sites
• Brownfields Sites

Lahontan GeoScience provides consulting services related to evaluating environmental impacts and assistance in environmental permitting. Phase I, II and III audits for real property transactions are performed by LGS staff and supervised by Nevada certified Environmental Managers or California Registered Environmental Assessors. Phase I environmental audits are standard investigations usually required by the lending institution to characterize the past and present usage of the property to determine if any adverse environmental conditions exist. This work involves investigating the history of the property using historical aerial photographs and Sanborn fire insurance maps to determine how the property had been used in the past, whether chemicals were used, how they were disposed of and if they have impacted soil and/or groundwater. If possible, existing owners and onsite workers are interviewed to see how waste products and chemicals were historically and presently handled and ultimately disposed. If “red flags” are raised during the Phase I process then a Phase II investigation is initiated. This involves collection of soil and groundwater samples to characterize the possible presence of chemicals from onsite usage. Phase III is the design and implementation of remediation of the site should chemical contamination be found. This work is done under the supervision of the local regulatory agency who oversees the Phase II and III aspects of the work. If leaking tanks are the source of the chemicals in the environment, which is often the case, a state insurance fund may be available to help  pay for the cleanup work.

Environmental evaluations related to hazardous waste and petroleum sites are performed to assist clients in meeting applicable state and/or federal regulations such as requirements of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as well as equivalent local and state regulations. Landfill facility siting and permitting services are also provided by LGS. In addition LGS staff provides technical expertise in the preparation of environmental assessments (EA) and environmental impact statements (EIS) pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) as well as the equivalent California legislation under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). LGS has worked as a consultant to the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection on Brownfields projects. Brownfields are abandoned properties that the federal government has determined require clean up to aid in improving a blighted neighborhood. LGS staff have also worked on the Downtown Reno PCE (perchloroethylene) Characterization Project on the behalf of NDEP. This work included characterizing the distribution of PCE in groundwater, installing numerous deep groundwater monitoring wells, identifying PCE sources, developing a computer model to predict the future distribution of  PCE in Downtown Reno and remediation alternatives.