As “end-of-the-pipe” pollutant releases have become better managed, attention has turned to the impacts of broader human activity on ecosystems, such as nonpoint source pollution, habitat alteration, and loss of biodiversity. Ecological risk assessments (ERAs) provide a process for determining the potential adverse effects of diverse impacts on plants and animals with the goal of facilitating more ecologically beneficial and cost-effective environmental management decisions. Use of ERAs in the decision-making process can result in more effective resource efficient remediation or treatment, reduced liabilities, and improved public relations. ERAs also have proven beneficial in helping to pinpoint valued and vulnerable resources and to provide focal points for stakeholder cooperation.
HSA has a long, successful history of predicting and assessing ecological risks and environmental impacts from a variety of sources to many types of organisms in a wide range of habitats. We specialize in the development of site-specific, client-tailored approaches to risk characterization that address our client’s goals and objectives for compliance, financial management, and environmental stewardship. From assessing the risks to animals and plants at manufactured gas plant sites and landfills to assessing the risks of pesticide applications, HSA’s environmental scientists and engineers understand the ERA process from planning through completion. HSA's objective is to achieve a balance between reasonable, practical solutions to environmental problems involving issues of risk, the requirements of the relevant agencies, and means to manage risk such that properties can be rendered safe for their intended use. HSA’s results oriented risk assessments focus on differentiating between actual versus perceived concerns for human health and the environment and clearly communicate the realistic issues.
Services provided:
- Analysis of multiple pathways and multiple stresses
- Exposure analysis and toxicity assessments
- Habitat and stressor mapping using GIS
- Integration of risk information for management decisions
- Interpretation and communication of risk
- Population and bioaccumulation modeling