Environmental assessment
CBA Ltd has extensive experience in conducting bio-physical assessments for a wide range of industrial and commercial projects: wind energy projects, highway and rail corridors, pipeline corridors, airports, residential development, golf courses, ski resorts, and the eco-tourism industry.
Potential Impacts of birds in Mackenzie Valley from pipeline clearings for Mackenzie Gas Project (2004)
CBA Ltd. worked with Canadian Wildlife Service, Prairie and Northern Region, biologists to assemble numerous long-term avian population and spot mapping monitoring datasets to deliver this project. The Mackenzie Valley Gas Project is proposed as a 1,220 km pipeline to transport liquid natural gas from Inuvik to a southern terminus in northern Alberta. Impacts to birds and bird habitats from an expanded and new pipeline corridor were expected and this study assessed the extent of these potential impacts.
Issues related to edge effects on birds and bird community responses are explored and mitigation strategies such as retention harvesting along the pipeline corridor, adaptive landscape management approaches, and considerations of best management practices for future landscape-level development are recommended. To see the full report go to our publications pages.
Wind Energy projects (2000 to present)
Since completing the very first wind-energy environmental assessment in British Columbia, CBA Ltd. remains one of the most active consulting companies in the this field, with project throughout the province. We have conducted field studies and/or prepared EA reports for proposed windfarms at Rumble Ridge, Knob Hill, Nimpkish, Banks Island, Mt. Hays, Mt. McDonald, Mt. George, Hackney Hills, Thunder-Red Willow, Wartenbe, Dokie Ridge, and Rocky Creek.
Studies include inventory and assessment of breeding birds, amphibians, reptiles, ungulate winter range, bats, furbearers, Marbled Murrelet flight paths, raptor migration and nesting areas, migrant songbird flight paths, rare plants and ecosystems, and special habitat features such as wetlands and mineral licks.
Studies include inventory and assessment of breeding birds, amphibians, reptiles, ungulate winter range, bats, furbearers, Marbled Murrelet flight paths, raptor migration and nesting areas, migrant songbird flight paths, rare plants and ecosystems, and special habitat features such as wetlands and mineral licks.
Pipelines
CBA has provided wildlife inventory information,
as a sub-consultant, for several natural gas and oil pipeline projects
including the PNG Looping Pipeline (Summit Lake to Kitimat – 2006), TMX (Hinton
to Valemount - 2005), TMX2 (Valemount to Darfield - 2006), Southern Crossing
(Kootenay - 1995), Inland Connector (Matsqui to Okanagan - 2001).
Transmission Lines
CBA has provided wildlife impact assessment
studies for several transmission line projects including an undersea
transmission line from Victoria to Washington State
(2005) and a transmission line on northern Vancouver
Island (2006-2007). CBA conducted an extensive research project on
bird mortalities from collisions with a transmission line crossing the Nanaimo River estuary (2003-2004). CBA also
developed and implemented habitat enhancements for birds for transmission line
rights-of-ways on Vancouver Island, near Greenwood,
and south of Prince George.
Run of the River Hydro
CBA provided bird inventory and assessment for
the Kokish River Hydroelectric Project (2007-2009).
Highways
CBA led wildlife assessments and mitigation
development for proposed upgrades to the Trans-Canada Highway between Revelstoke
and the Alberta
border during the preliminary design and design phases for three separate
sections of highway (1998-2000).