Before you start that fisheries enhancement project, wetland restoration, or erosion control effort, you need to ask the right questions. Trout Headwaters’ free consumer report “Buyer Beware: A Warning to Consumers about the Restoration Industry” will give you the Top 10 Questions to ask any aquatic resource consultant or ecological restoration contractor.
In the report, first released in 2012, we also identify the five most common and persistent problems in the aquatic resource consulting industry:
- Lack of industry standards or professional certification for practitioners
- Assessments that are no more than opinion disguised as science
- No consideration for multiple project alternatives or cost-effectiveness of alternatives
- Use of “cookbook” design strategies without consideration of site specific conditions, ecological functions, or owner goals
- Poor understanding around project liability issues
- High degree of uncertainty about how to measure or predict project success/failure
Many issues can be solved by insisting upon repeatable, scientifically-valid processes and data. One simple rule – never hire a company that shows up on a project, looks at the site, kicks the dirt, and starts offering solutions. Make sure the company intends to perform a thorough assessment before providing “answers,” or quoting a price. Ask what the assessment report will include. Assessment parameters will vary of course, depending upon the type of resource (stream, lake, wetland), but a scientific, repeatable assessment is simply mandatory. You will of course, want to inquire about the company’s experience and about other projects they’ve successfully completed. Your first project should not be your contractors first project…. >for More request a copy of “Buyer Beware”
See examples of beautiful, cost-effective and successful stream, habitat and wetland restoration projects done across the U.S. by one of the oldest and most experienced firms in the field. Download a Free Copy of RecentWork from Trout Headwaters, Inc
