Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an integral part of planning and development. It is a process by which the anticipated effects on the environment of a proposed development are measured to inform the decision making process. The EIA process can often be seen as complex and confusing, particularly for key stakeholders. However, if managed well it offers an opportunity to de-risk development and enhance reputation.

The ability to retrofit portfolios of assets is becoming increasingly important to the developers’ toolkit. Our team of planners can advise on strategies which fully consider the needs of retrofitting, enhancing an existing function of the building, and repurposing, where they challenge the existing function to see if it is still relevant, and then provide remodelling designs and solutions to suit the new purpose for the site.

We recognise the need to incorporate an understanding of ecological systems in our services, and our team balances ecology and development needs to support project delivery. Throughout the planning and development process, we will provide support from concept design to post-project monitoring and evaluation. We advise on legislative requirements, and deliver projects that integrate the needs of the built and natural environment.

Water resource management encompasses a wide range of disciplines, including integrated water resources management, assessment of the demand for water for drinking and irrigation purposes, groundwater mapping and surface water monitoring, simulation and modelling of the hydrologic cycle, legislation, river basin management, institutional and capacity building and water resources protection.

Our planners, working alongside our SuDS engineers, deliver an integrated approach ensuring that the management, development and utilisation of water resources, satisfies the four pillars of SuDS, as outlined in the SuDS manual, enhancing the amenity and biodiversity in the area, whilst providing water security.

Our team will deliver the Flood Risk Assessment (FRA) alongside the planning application, outlining the threat of flooding within the site’s surrounding area and providing measures by which the risk can be mitigated or avoided.

Our team will also identify the potential source(s) of flooding, review flooding history, obtain critical water levels, undertake 1D/2D modelling, and determine the influences on river hydraulics. The assessment considers flooding from tidal, fluvial, groundwater, sewer, highway and on-site drainage sources. If needed, our assessments can cover a number of other factors such as loss of floodplain storage, washland modelling, flood plans, access and egress, sequential testing, exception testing and surface water drainage issues. Through a series of alleviation measures and engineering options, we will determine the most cost effective and practical solutions.

A Drainage Impact Assessment (DIA), which often complements the Flood Risk Assessment, will provide a preliminary review of the potential options for drainage design that may be developed in avoidance or mitigation of flood risks. It also considers the physical changes that the proposed drainage measures may cause to the development and the off-site area drainage efficiency beyond the proposed development. Our consultants will supplement the DIA with microdrainage or infodrainage calculations, to prove the existing run-off rates from site and to determine the betterment of the proposed drainage system. We will then provide an outline design for an appropriate sustainable drainage system to support the planning application.

Our geotechnical consultancy provides comprehensive geotechnical interpretative and factual reports tailored to ensure a safe and economic design, assisting with: foundation design, settlement, ground stability issues due to mining and cavities, slope stability analysis, retaining structures, earthworks, embankments, road designs, soakaways and many more geotechnical engineering aspects.

Our consultants will design a bespoke site investigation using the appropriate intrusive techniques to obtain information regarding the geology and hydrology of each site.

In order to identify land contamination, whether it be to support a planning or buildings regulations application or for assurance when buying land (especially brownfield land), a contaminated land investigation needs to be carried out.

We will carry out land contamination assessments  to support the planning process and ensure regulatory compliance to mitigate the risks of penalties and unexpected costs.

Potentially hazardous gases may exist in the ground naturally, or be present as a consequence of ground contamination resulting from former use of the site, such as landfills. We will identify potentially hazardous gases, which may include methane, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulphide and often a variety of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and work with stakeholders in the design of a land remediation strategy.