ABSTRACT 7th International Symposium on Environmental Concerns in Rights-of-Way Management
TITLE:	The Value of Natural Resource Specialists in the Construction of Natural Gas Pipeline .
AUTHOR(S):	Gil Paquette Duke Engineering & Services Portland, ME, USA Mike Tyrrell Earth Tech Concord, MA, USA Steve Craycroft Essex Environmental Half Moon Bay, CA, USA Gus McLachlan Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline Hampton, NH, USA
KEY WORDS:	environmental compliance, inspection, monitoring, natural gas pipeline, resource specialist, right-of-way
Today's regulatory climate and myriad of local, state, and federal environment regulations makes environmental compliance an important element of any construction project. During the permitting phase of a project, environmental resources and concerns about siting and constructing a proposed linear project are identified by consulting professionals, including wetland scientists, wildlife and aquatic biologists, and botanists. Oftentimes these professionals are local and have intimate knowledge of natural resources potentially affected by linear project construction. Many linear projects traverse long distances and tend to encounter large numbers of wetlands, waterbodies, regulatory buffer zones, and sensitive resources including rare and threatened plants. Accurate identification of these resources in the field prior to and during the many stages of construction is critical for their protection. The basic tenet of this paper is that natural resource professionals involved during the permitting phase can be valuable assets to the construction inspection team as Resource Specialists. Resource Specialists may become a necessary component of a company's staff during construction as agencies and the public are becoming increasingly concerned about sensitive environmental resources. In 1999, Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline, L.L.C., constructed a 200-mile natural gas pipeline in the state of Maine. An interdisciplinary inspection services team, consisting of Resource Specialists and Environmental Inspectors, worked together and contributed to the overall success of the project. Their intimate knowledge of the natural resources along the route and established professional relationships with regional agency staff helped Maritimes successfully complete the project on schedule and in compliance with numerous environmental permit conditions. Ref#: Abs-1-148