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Resilience Services

Building stronger communities through science, innovation, and nature-based solutions.

Overview

In response to the ever-increasing costs of disaster recovery, there is a strong call to establish resilient communities that can withstand future risks. Accompanying this call are increased funding programs at all levels of government focused on resilience projects with the intention to mitigate the losses to life and infrastructure from future natural disasters.

SWCA has long been a leader in National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulatory compliance and ecosystem restoration services, including coastal restoration, natural channel design, green infrastructure, and wildfire mitigation projects that have an impact on the resilience of our lived environment. Our climate resilience experts provide support for federal, state, and local agencies, private companies, and non-profits in conceptualizing and completing resilience projects—incorporating nature-based solutions at any scale.

Adaptation Planning

SWCA recognizes the increasing threat posed by changes in the global climate. Environmental changes will exert a broad range of impacts on natural resources including wildfires, coastal flooding, and the spread of invasive species. As one of the nation’s oldest and largest environmental science and planning firms, SWCA’s experts possess the skills and experience to assist our clients in identifying climate risks within their projects and properties. We then develop strategies that will address those risks and support sustainability long term.

Coastal Resilience 

Across the U.S., coastal wetlands are experiencing crucial losses. Coastal wetlands include freshwater and saltwater wetlands that can spread for miles beyond the coast into inland areas. These wetlands are critical to the wellbeing of the environment and the people who live near them. Wetlands play a significant role in protecting upland areas from flooding, filtering water before it reaches the ocean, providing habitats for threatened and endangered species, and preventing coastline erosion.

With rising sea levels, storms, and urban and rural development, maintaining and protecting our coastal wetlands is critical to maintaining the environment.

Relevant Services

  • Coastal and Marine Fisheries
  • Coastal Mitigation Banking
  • Design/Build
  • Dune Restoration
  • Ecological Restoration Planning, Engineering, Design, Implementation, and Construction Oversight
  • NEPA Assessment for Project Implementation
  • Permittee Responsible Mitigation Planning
  • Presence/Absence Surveys
  • Sea Grass and Oyster Habitat Evaluation
  • Threatened, Endangered, and Sensitive Species Habitat Surveys
  • Tidal Marsh Habitat Assessments

Natural Disaster Resilience

Hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, and other natural disasters can have devastating impacts on communities. The aftermath can seem overwhelming. SWCA have personally weathered these disasters, so we understand firsthand how to help move recovery efforts forward quickly, effectively, and economically.

SWCA’s disaster recovery experts can help to navigate the maze of environmental regulations required throughout the recovery process including through grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Our experts have experience with FEMA Public Assistance and Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funded disaster recovery programs, Federal Highway Administration Emergency Relief (FHWA-ER), Natural Resources Conservation Service Emergency Watershed Protection program (NRCS-EWP), and the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP), among others. Our specialists include wetland, water, and stream restoration scientists; fire scientists and post-fire specialists; threatened species specialists; ecologists; National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) planners; archaeologists; and architectural historians. We provide on-the-ground and regulatory support for individuals, private companies, non-profits, and municipal agencies—anyone needing environmental expertise that will enable them to move forward in their disaster recovery.

Relevant Services

  • Agency and Programmatic Agreement Negotiation
  • Archaeological Site Identification and Monitoring
  • Clean Water Act Assessments
  • Drone Operations and Aerial Photography
  • Endangered Species Act (ESA) Consultation
  • Environmental Assessments (EA) and Impact Statements (EIS)
  • Environmental Compliance Monitoring
  • Erosion Control and Revegetation Solutions
  • FEMA/HUD Recovery and Resilience Program Planning
  • Fire Ecology, Management, and Planning
  • Forest Habitat Impacts and Restoration
  • Historic Architectural and Preservation Assessments
  • Native American and Hawaiian Consultation
  • NEPA Compliance and Permitting
  • Post-Fire Restoration
  • Public Involvement and Community Outreach
  • Tier I (Broad) and Tier II (Site-Specific) Environmental Reviews
  • Workshops and Training

Wildfire Services

With nearly two decades of experience in wildfire sciences, SWCA is a recognized expert in the U.S. We emphasize collaboration with federal, state, and local government agencies, non-governmental agencies, private industry, and communities. We embrace the role that wildfire plays in many regions, providing positive ecosystem services for fire adapted vegetation. Equally, successful resilience by communities in the face of more extreme climate-driven wildfires requires planning ahead for all stages of the wildfire cycle: readiness, response, recovery, and restoration.

Our wildfire mitigation and management experts provide a full suite of services and customized plans to meet both large-scale regional needs and those of small communities aligning with the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy and State guidance and policies.

We’re proud participants of the 2025 Fire Safe Vendor List.

Relevant Services

  • Agency Forest Plans and Wildfire Management Plans
  • Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPPs)
  • Cultural Resource Surveys
  • Environmental Assessments (EA) and Impact Statements (EIS)
  • Fire Management Plans
  • Fire Risk Assessments
  • Fuel and Vegetation Mapping and Inventories
  • Hazardous Fuels Reduction and Restoration
  • Identification of Grant and Funding Opportunities for Plan Implementation
  • Natural Resource Surveys
  • On-the-Ground Hazard and Risk Assessments
  • Post-Fire Recovery and Restoration
  • Public Involvement and Community Outreach
  • Stakeholder Engagement
  • Threatened and Endangered Species Surveys
  • Utility Wildfire Mitigation Plans- Transmission, Distribution, Solar and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESSs)
  • Workshops and Training

Meet the Experts

Impact In Action

  • Learn more about SWCA's climate resilience services.

  • SWCA is a recognized expert in completing pre- and post-fire planning work throughout the U.S.

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