Water Resource Engineering and Renewable Energy Services
Confidential Renewable Energy Providers • Nationwide
Solution Overview
Client:
Confidential renewable energy providers
Business Challenge:
- Address complex stormwater design and permitting challenges unique to the renewable energy industry
Solution:
- Timely, comprehensive, and effective site‑specific approach to design and permitting that addresses regulatory requirements and all project stakeholder needs
Results:
- Effective stormwater management systems that withstand the test of time
Challenge
Stormwater regulations are both complex and vary widely based on region, industry, and even site-specific requirements. For renewable energy projects, additional permitting and design challenges apply.
Solution
Apex Companies team members provide renewable energy services including civil engineering and water resource design, prepare permit documents, and conduct inspections of stormwater infrastructure both during and post-construction for renewable energy projects nationwide.
Apex has developed grading erosion and sediment control plans for multiple wind farm projects qualifying for the production tax credit (PTC). The scope of work included substation grading, access and haul road design, and grading exterior to turbine foundations. Apex has also developed full-site stormwater pollution prevention plans (SWPPPs) and preliminary civil design to assist developers with level of effort cost estimates from engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractors.
Apex also specializes in performing post-construction retrofit design to existing stormwater infrastructure to alleviate nuisance flooding or for facilities to maintain compliance with federal, state, and local permitting requirements.
Our team has extensive experience performing hydraulic modelling with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Stormwater Management Model (SWMM), the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Hydrologic Engineering Center River Analysis System (HEC-RAS), and Hydrologic Engineering Center Hydrologic Modeling System (HEC-HMS), and others. Additionally, Apex prepares flood plain analysis and permit documentation including Conditional Letter of Map Revision (CLOMR) or Letter of Map Revision (LOMR) to comply with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requirements.
Apex works with property and project owners to minimize the impact of stormwater controls on daily operations at facilities.
Many projects are constrained by space or landowner concerns and preferences. Apex strives to meet the needs of all project stakeholders though communication and detailed analysis.
Results
Apex’s engineering team, including principals, engineers, and engineers-in-training (EITs), meet daily during the design phase of renewable energy projects. Our philosophy is to maintain transparency during active design projects, keep our team small and nimble, and ensure the entire project team understands, approves, and is part of the design. We maintain quick scrum/design status meetings where all project engineers discuss goals for the day, project findings, and potential issues.
Apex’s approach results in a design and permitting process that is both comprehensive and cost effective, allowing projects to move forward in a timely manner, without unnecessary delays or roadblocks.