GEI’s staff has in-depth experience in shoreline assessment and shoreline erosion control and prevention, particularly with projects that require a large variety of techniques to stabilize eroded shorelines. GEI utilizes approaches that are more environmentally friendly, cost less to implement, and are less controversial when obtaining regulatory approvals.

GEI works to help clients better understand and address the ecological issues relevant to their situation. Our team works closely with clients to develop innovative solutions to challenging issues. Ecological shoreline restoration projects are often completed along with our other core disciplines of environmental risk assessment, geotechnical, and water resources services.

Unique among consulting firms, GEI’s in-house laboratory offers a wide variety of toxicity tests to provide our clients precise measurements in water quality assessments. We routinely conduct specialized toxicity testing with standard or field-collected organisms in support of water quality criteria reviews. Our laboratory services range from identification of benthic invertebrate samples, to ambient and whole effluent toxicity testing, to low-level nutrient chemistry, providing the quality of data necessary for comprehensive ecological analyses of the lake or stream system. A wide variety of equipment is utilized, including state-of-the-art nutrient analysis methods, to achieve data at research-quality unsurpassed in the contract laboratory field using U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)–approved methods. GEI has extensive experience in processing biological samples, encompassing a wide range of aquatic communities in habitats ranging from small spring brooks to large reservoirs, lakes, and rivers.

If there is a potential for project related impacts to state and/or threatened and endangered species, GEI has staff trained in the protocols required for presence absence surveys and the identification of critical habitats which may support species of concern. Our species-specific surveys and assessments include migratory passerine and coastal birds, bats, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, aquatic biota including mussels, fish, marine sea turtles, and mammals. Our permitting experience and familiarity with staff in the federal and state regulatory agencies minimizes delays when navigating through the Endangered Species Act review process.

GEI provides environmental permitting for a large variety of projects including piers, wharves, bulkheads, sea walls, marinas, ferry landings, shoreline restoration, dredging and jetty systems, and wave energy protection systems. Our experience includes federal, state, and local permitting in many different states. We will navigate the complexities of the regulatory approval process for our clients to get projects started, keep them in compliance, and bring them to completion.

GEI’s waterfront services are often integrated with our water resources services. This integration better enables innovative solutions that are more effective, sustainable, and reduces overall project costs. This includes design and evaluation of new and existing waterfront structures, such as berths, bulkheads, seawalls, piles, and heavy structures. Learn more here.

GEI’s Hydraulics and Hydrology (H&H) expertise is called on to support the design and permitting of projects and facilities involving groundwater, water storage systems, and water conveyances. We provide design, permitting, and construction assistance for a range of projects, specializing in watershed analysis, groundwater modeling, and conduit analysis to support our projects. Our H&H experts have also been called upon in litigation support. Our projects range in size from single-parcel construction dewatering to interregional water banking.

We understand coastal processes and their destructive potential, including wind and wave forces and deterioration of structural elements. Knowledge of these issues allows us to provide long-term solutions and prevent the premature need for maintenance or reconstruction. It also allows us to make realistic assessments of structural life both for existing structures and for new structure design. Our seawall and revetment work includes investigation and assessment of many structures and establishing design criteria including water levels and wave conditions. We can provide wave loading, wave runup and overtopping analysis, and assessment of the potential impacts of sea level rise. We offer engineering design and planning services including project management, design, permitting, bidding, and construction administration services.