Through a General Services Administration (GSA) contract, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) – California/Nevada Region retained SWCA to complete a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) and an Environmental Impact Statement for the four National Wildlife Refuges in southern Nevada. One refuge was established by President Theodore Roosevelt and contains 1.6 million-acres: the largest single refuge within the contiguous United States.

Services Provided:

• Preplanning
• Development of vision statements, goals and alternative objectives for each refuge
• Preparation of the affected environment and environmental consequences sections
• Development of the draft and final CCP / EIS
• Public scoping and response to public comments
• Preparation of a cultural resources overview and research context for historic and prehistoric resources
• Spatial database management

For this ongoing project, SWCA staff is proactive in determining potential issues, closely monitors the current budget and quickly executes change orders when the client requests services which are out of the original statement of work (SOW). With strong leadership and organizational skills, SWCA staff has taken over the task of coordinating and officiating CORE Team meetings for the USFWS, and the client has repeatedly expressed their thanks for SWCA’s guidance through a long and arduous process.