Los Angeles, CA – To meet the firm’s increasing workload on public sector projects, Partner Engineering and Science, Inc. announces the expansion of the firm’s NEPA Practice with the hiring of environmental industry veterans James Cullinan, PG; Daniel Stallings, REA; Greg Harris, and Sarah Morrissey.
“While the core of our business lies in the environmental and building sciences for financial institutions and private landowners, we are getting more and more government-related assignments,” said President Joseph P. Derhake PE. “Much of that activity is for assessments for wireless towers, which are regulated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and the expertise and experience of these professionals make them a perfect fit for our growing NEPA practice.”
“As more and more devices become wireless, the necessity for new cell towers have increased,” added Partner Principal Summer Gell who heads Partner’s Telecommunications team.
According to the annualized wireless industry survey conducted by the CTIA – The Wireless Association, the number of cell sites in the United States stood at 283,385 at the end of 2011, an increase of more than 30,000 from the previous year.
Under NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) a Federal Agency must review a project’s potential impacts to several environmental and cultural factors which are not typically covered by a Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment (ESA). A NEPA review examines such things as endangered and threatened species, designated critical habitats, historic places, flood plains, high-intensity white lights and radio frequency radiation, among others.
Each of the recent hires brings to Partner no less than 12 years of experience in the environmental due diligence industry.
Cullinan’s main focus of NEPA work is in the telecommunication industry where he generated NEPA Checklist Reports for new cell tower sites. Over his 15-year career, the registered professional geologist has also focused on HUD Phase 1 Environmental Sites Assessments that require NEPA conformance. Cullinan is based in Orlando, Florida.
Stallings, formerly of the United States Navy, has assisted wireless communications carriers and their designated site development contractors facilitate the Section 106/environmental review process to ensure their regulatory compliance with the FCC under NEPA. Stallings is based out of the Partner San Francisco office.
Harris, formerly of Terracon and EBI, has more than 12 years of environmental due diligence experience and joins Partner as Project Manager in the firm’s Boulder, CO office. He has garnered a national reputation for his NEPA work as well as other environmental matters related to the telecommunications industry having completed over 1,000 NEPA assessments. His past clients include Verizon Wireless, AT&T Mobility, LLC, Sprint, T-Mobile, Bechtel Communications, Overland Contracting, Black & Veatch, Clearwire, Fidelity Towers, Level 3 Communications, American Tower Corporation, and Cox Communications. Harris also has significant experience in Phase 1 and Phase 2 ESAs, lead-based paint surveys, radon studies, and mold assessments for existing and planned projects throughout Colorado. Harris is also certified by the EPA and the State of Colorado as an asbestos inspector.
Morrissey joins Partner after serving as Information Technology Asset Management Coordinator with General Dynamics Information Technology where she was responsible for overseeing environmental compliance nationwide. She also was responsible for reviewing all Phase 1 Site Assessments and NEPA documentation for industry compliance and accuracy. While at General Dynamics, Morrissey created a national database of parties with potential interest in the impacts of telecommunication tower development to ensure that the highest level of due diligence was achieved. Ms. Morrissey delivered educational programs on environmental compliance to internal and external audiences.
Prior to General Dynamics, Morrissey was the National Environmental Compliance Coordinator for American Tower, a leading independent owner and operator of wireless and broadcast communication sites.