LCLA relies on a combination of in-house professional staff and an extensive national network of highly trained specialists to provide the following services:

ECOLOGICAL SCIENCES
LCLA teams of scientists are flexible and configured by project to address specific needs anywhere in the U.S.A. Our teams pride themselves in our abilities to our training and experience to apply best available science. We are experts at the characterization of landscapes, ecosystems, and natural systems structure and functioning. We work efficiently, rapidly, and at almost any scale. In the context of ecosystem restorations, we usually focus on assessments of current conditions and functioning in rivers, wetlands and forested ecosystems, analyses of perturbation history, probable responses of ecosystems to perturbation, analyses of site potentials, characterization of the movement, fate and transport of contaminants, and assessment of likely responses of ecosystems to restoration measures. We write and communicate with great care and have the experience to put science in the context of strategic planning and regulatory compliance. In particular, our teams focus on -

  • Core Sciences - Hydrology, geomorphology, soil science, biogeochemistry, systems ecology, botany, forestry, and wildlife biology at site specific and landscape scales.

  • Assessment - of waters/wetland and forested ecosystem functions and the responses of these ecosystems to various impacts, land use decisions, or restoration strategies.

  • Research and Science Applied - Our teams have the academic credentials, training, and experience synthesize existing research or to identify and carry out research necessary to answer complex environmental questions and then apply results to real-world situations.

  • Monitoring - We have decades of experience in state of the art hydrologic, water quality, vegetation and faunal community characterizations and monitoring.

  • Communication and Leadership - Our teams have the social skills, academic credentials, training, and experience to communicate effectively with almost anybody. We take great care to break down the science and explain its meaning or importance in the context of practical and land or ecosystem-based applications. We are well known for leading the environmental components of large and complicated projects, and for getting results that are practical, thoroughly vetted, and cost-effective.

REGULATORY ASSISTANCE
LCLA has decades of experience in assisting clients in understanding and complying with environmental regulations at the federal, state, and local levels. To accomplish this -

  • We provide all levels of regulatory assistance including background and sensitive areas surveys, waters/wetland delineations, permitting, mitigation/restoration design, and monitoring.

  • We assist clients in understanding practical approaches and pathways to manage issues that include waters/wetlands, water quality, stream corridors, floodplains, endangered species, storm water, sediment and erosion control, and contaminants.

  • We solve problems that are complex and contentious. In this regard we focus on innovative and ecologically sound approaches that are cost effective, timely, and in compliance with all levels of jurisdiction.

  • We of ten lead federal, state, and local enforcement teams and therefore have a great del of experience in steering enforcement cases and in providing peer review of plans and approaches that are developed to respond to enforcement actions.

  • We provide expert testimony and strategic planning backed by best available science and delivered via our ability to effectively communicate the meaning of science in the context of extant federal, state and local policies, guidelines and regulations that impact land management decisions.

ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION
LCLA has designed and overseen the construction large and small ecosystem restorations across the U.S.A. Our focus has always been to apply best available science and design to achieve land and landscape-based results. In all of our restoration projects, we use a reference-based ecosystem approach that targets replacement or improvement of the suite of hydrologic, biogeochemical, plant community, and faunal support/habitat functions that have been lost or degraded. We strive to -

  • Develop and then build innovative and science-based restoration designs that are reliable, practical, and cost effective

  • Articulate adaptive management protocols and contingency measures for ecosystem restoration projects that keep the projects on track for success.

  • Identify and then manage the fate and transport of contaminants in saturated media in landscapes that are highly degraded or stressed.

  • Tie our restoration designs to local and regional reference systems and to their surrounding so they become integral and functioning parts of the landscape

  • Have a hands on approach at all levels of projects from initial contact, through design and permitting to construction and monitoring

  • Effectively communicate project goals, approaches, status, and issues to any level of stake-holders. We are well experienced in communicating truth to power.

EXPERT TESTIMONY
Since 1990, Lyndon C. Lee has been one of the U.S. Department of Justice's key witnesses for waters/wetland related cases nationally. The company has also provided environmental expertise and expert testimony to a number of law firms.

  • Experience providing testimony and backup information for several high profile Clean Water Act cases for the U.S. Department of Justice and EPA.

  • Collaborative efforts with law firms to provide environmental expertise to clients.

SEDIMENT & EROSION CONTROL
LCLA scientists have 30+ years experience in complying with the complex set of regulations that focus on protection of protection of water quality, sediment and erosion control, stormwater management, management of contaminants, and protection of waters/wetlands. We provide practical field-based recommendations, and help design and implement control measures. We also provide water quality and sediment and erosions control systems monitoring and reporting.

NATIONAL WETLANDS SCIENCE TRAINING COOPERATIVE
The National Wetland Science Training Cooperative (NWSTC) is a division of LCLA. We offer a selection of training courses nationwide on topics related to river, wetland and forest science, restoration design, and stormwater management.. Since it was founded in 1987, NWSTC has conducted more than 75 training courses on wetland science and regulation. Cooperators have included federal and state agencies, nonprofit organizations and private groups. NWSTC provides both open enrollment courses that are tailored to the region or state in which they are held, and contracted courses designed to meet the specific training needs of an agency or group. Courses combine field and classroom instruction and are taught by teams of highly experienced instructors.

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NWSTC Course Topics Have Included:

• Jurisdictional Delineation of Waters/Wetlands.
• The Hydrogeomorphic Approach to the Assessment of Wetland Functions.
• Design, Construction and Use of Wetlands for Stormwater Management.
• Cumulative Impact Assessment of Wetlands.
• Best Management Approaches for Silviculture in Forested Wetlands.
• Identification of Wetland Plants.
• Identification of Hydric Soils.