Stream and Wetland Umbrella Mitigation Banks in Kentucky
Charles Davis, PE, CFM
Beaver Creek Hydrology, LLC
Lexington, KY
Kevin Roush
Ecosystem Investment Partners
Baltimore, MD
Ecosystem Investment Partners (EIP) has developed two private umbrella stream and wetland mitigation banks in Kentucky in partnership with the design/construction team of Beaver Creek Hydrology and Stream Restoration Specialists. Under the Kentucky Stream and Wetland Umbrella Mitigation Bank and the Kentucky Stream and Wetland Umbrella Mitigation Bank III, EIP has currently completed four watershed-scale stream mitigation projects with successful credit release (all four projects are currently in monitoring phases). These four projects encompass multiple headwater watersheds in eastern and central Kentucky servicing credit needs in the Big Sandy River Basin, the Salt River Basin, and the Kentucky River Basin. The sites total over 4,400 acres with 437,000 linear feet (83 miles) of streams permitted for restoration and 264,000 linear feet completed. Over 970,000 trees and shrubs are part of the planting plans for the projects. The project sites will generate over 250,000 mitigation credits for use in offsetting impacts in Kentucky while leaving the state with large tracts of restored ecosystems protected in perpetuity and generating significant economic growth in the surrounding communities including employing former coal miners. The rural nature of the projects allows for a design approach of re-establishment of the mainstream channels by re-grading the valleys to maximize groundwater storage and reconnect the streams to the floodplain. The projects include design and construction of high- and low-gradient streams with ephemeral, intermittent and perennial flow regimes for the creation of heterogeneous habitats at several scales for macroinvertebrates, fish, amphibians, and reptiles. The sites were designed using regional curves developed for each site to determine channel dimensions, and the BANKFULL Natural Channel Design software was used to design the channel geometry. This paper will provide an overview of the acquisition, permitting, design, construction, and monitoring phases of these mitigation bank sites in Kentucky as well as lessons learned by the project partners regarding managing risk for successful private mitigation banking.
About Charles Davis, PE, CFM
Chuck Davis is a Professional Engineer and Project Manager with Beaver Creek Hydrology, LLC, a stream and wetland restoration firm specializing in aquatic resources mitigation consulting. He is licensed to practice as a Professional Engineer (Civil) in Kentucky, Ohio, Texas, Indiana, and Arizona. His experience at Beaver Creek Hydrology has focused on providing mitigation solutions to both public and private compensatory mitigation providers. This has included permitting strategies for compensatory mitigation projects, including consulting services for the selection, acquisition, design, implementation, and management of mitigation project sites. Design and implementation services include planning and engineering, construction oversight, and monitoring of the engineering components of aquatic resource mitigation. Clients have included mitigation banks, in-lieu fee programs, and permittee-responsible mitigation providers.
Chuck’s career prior to Beaver Creek Hydrology was also focused in the water resources engineering industry. His primary experience is one- and multi-dimensional hydrodynamic modeling of riverine systems. This skillset led to Chuck’s role as a coder for the BANKFULL Natural Channel Design Software for Beaver Creek Hydrology, a design model for meandering channels invented and developed by Dr. Brian Belcher. Chuck’s other modeling experience includes applications in flood hazard analysis, flood control, environmental design, and regulatory compliance, irrigation and drainage, dam break inundation mapping, and sediment transport analysis. He has worked on projects for a variety of federal (e.g., US Army Corps of Engineers, Federal Emergency Management Agency, US Bureau of Reclamation), state, and local governmental agencies as well as many private clients. Additional experience includes hydrologic modeling, flow measurement, fluvial geomorphology, teaching, and surveying.
About Kevin Roush
Kevin Roush is Assistant Director of Markets at EIP, where he helps permittees navigate the stream, wetland, and endangered species habitat mitigation process. Having worked in the mitigation space for nearly the last decade, primarily in the Appalachian region, he brings a wealth of experience assisting clients to reduce their mitigation liabilities, find cost savings, and accelerate the permitting process for their projects.
Kevin brings a unique perspective to this position having prior experience working within the mitigation industry as an eco-asset developer/provider at a nationwide mitigation firm and directly in private industry as a permittee at one of the nation’s largest diversified energy producers. During that time, his responsibilities spanned site search, project management, construction oversight, regulatory engagement, sales, and marketing.
Kevin currently resides in Pittsburgh with his wife, Erin, and their daughter. When not working, he can usually be found running or partaking in any outdoor activity that involves water or trails. Kevin holds a BS in Biology from Alderson-Broaddus University in Philippi, WV.