Ontario, Canada
Environmental Scientist, Biologist, and Ecologist with experience in terrestrial ecology studies, project management, ecological restoration, and reporting. Strives to provide an objective approach to conservation issues. Expertise in vegetation communities and species, pollination biology, assessment of natural heritage systems, Species at Risk, and environmental policy. Experienced in the preparation of environmental assessments (EAs), environmental impact studies (EIS), and existing conditions reports. Specialties: land development, restoration ecology, road ecology, botanical studies, pollination biology, ELC, land resources, statistical analysis, GIS, field work, plant sciences, and water resources.
As Project Coordinator – Senior Terrestrial Ecologist for R.J. Burnside & Associates Limited, I am responsible for providing technical leadership to junior staff and ensuring the quality of the deliverables required for natural environment components for environmental land use planning and development projects. My role enables me to be involved in the natural environment aspects of land development projects, from initial constraints investigations to detailed field inventories and reporting, through to post-construction ecological restoration and monitoring. I am involved in the project management of Land Development Ecology work including the development and maintenance of project scopes, schedules, budgets, and coordination of staff. I am responsible for liaising with clients and senior regulatory officials (e.g. MECP, Conservation Authorities, etc.) including at municipal council meetings, as well as providing expert witness testimony at the Ontario Land Tribunal / Ontario Municipal Board (OLT / OMB). My field skills include ecological restoration and monitoring, vegetation identification and assessment, wetland evaluation, amphibian surveys, SAR identification, ecological constraints analysis, and natural heritage features analysis. I have extensive experience with the assessment and approval process for Butternut (Species at Risk). My certifications and training include Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner (CERP #0263), Excellence in Project Management, Ecological Land Classification (ELC), the Ontario Wetland Evaluation System (OWES), Butternut Health Assessment (BHA #428), Class II Electrofishing, and the MNRF Reptile and Amphibian training course.
As Project Coordinator – Terrestrial Ecologist for R.J. Burnside & Associates Limited, I am responsible for delivering the natural environment components for environmental land use planning and development projects. My role enables me to be involved in the natural environment aspects of land development projects, from initial constraints investigations through to post-construction ecological restoration and monitoring as the Project Coordinator and as the Terrestrial Ecologist. I have over 9 years of experience as a professional consultant. As a consultant, I have been involved in land development and infrastructure projects throughout Ontario, including the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Ottawa Area, Northern Ontario, and Simcoe-Muskoka-Haliburton. Before the private sector, I applied my biological expertise in the public sector and scientific research roles, including positions with Conservation Authorities and in pollination ecology research in British Columbia. My field skills include vegetation identification and assessment, wetland delineation, SAR identification, ecological constraints analysis, and natural heritage features analysis. I have extensive experience with the assessment and approvals process for Butternut (Species at Risk). My certifications and training include Excellence in Project Management, Ecological Land Classification (ELC), the Ontario Wetland Evaluation System (OWES), Butternut Health Assessment (BHA #428), Class II Electrofishing, and the MNRF Reptile and Amphibian training course.
As an Ecologist at WSP (formerly MMM Group Ltd.) much of my work revolved around botany: conducting Ecological Land Classification (ELC), botanical inventories, vegetation monitoring, wetland and feature delineations, Species At Risk (SAR) surveys, and Butternut Health Assessments. Additional tasks included general wildlife surveys, targeted Whip-Poor-Will surveys, anuran call counts, and electrofishing. In this position, I worked on a wide variety of projects which included transportation planning and/or design projects (Preliminary and Detail Design) for provincial highways and municipal roads, residential and commercial development projects, and linear infrastructure projects. I analyzed how my projects fit with environmental policy and legislation including the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the Provincial Policy Statement (PPS), and the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan (ORMCP). I applied this knowledge in developing and implementing field survey programs and in authoring a variety of reports, including Environmental Impact Studies, inputs to Environmental Assessments, and other natural environment reports.
Contract work on small Environmental Impact Studies. Services included field studies and report compilation.
Provided nature interpretation to visitors about the flora, fauna, and restoration efforts at Tommy Thompson Park on the Toronto waterfront.
• Verifying the number and type of threats to municipal drinking water systems. • Conducting field surveys, phone interviews, and site visits • Updating Microsoft Access and Sharepoint databases • Sourcing, organizing, and analyzing environmental and hydrogeological data in support of various technical studies. • Meetings with municipal staff and working groups/agencies to discuss technical strategies, data management/sharing, and technical issues. • Data entry, data management, and report writing • Participating in other NVCA initiatives such as Marsh Monitoring of birds, Endangered Species Monitoring (Piping Plovers), and Sturgeon radio tracking.