Here's just a small sampling of the clients and projects we've worked on over the years.

550 MW Topaz Solar Project

• Client: Aspen Environmental Group/First Solar/Althouse and Meade

• Location: Carrizo Plain; San Luis Obispo County, CA

• Completion Date: 2015

The 550 megawatt Topaz Solar Farm will produce enough electricity to power 160,000 homes in California. The Farm is expected to displace 377,000 tons of Carbon Dioxide each year, which is the equivalent of removing 73,000 cars from the road (www.firstsolar.com).

MBI Project Highlights

• Pre-project Surveys

  • Assessment of habitat

  • Identification of survey needs including review of previous work performed

  • Determining potential for occurrence of state- or federal-listed endangered, threatened and special-status species

• Permitting

  • Technical assistance with application preparation for California Endangered Species Act Incidental Take Permit (CESA ITP)

• Designated Biologist and Biological Monitoring Support

  • Overseeing pre-construction surveys/sweeps and site inspections

  • Implementation of CESA ITP, Federal Biological Opinion, and San Luis Obispo County Mitigation Monitoring Plan

  • Nesting bird/bird fatality surveys

  • San Joaquin kit fox (SJKF) monitoring (den monitoring, construction monitoring, and telemetry)

North Midway Sunset Development Plan

• Client: Berry Petroleum Company (formerly LINN Energy)

• Location: North Midway Sunset Oil Field; Kern County, CA

• Completion Date: Ongoing Since 2006

LINN Energy properties in the Midway Sunset Field were acquired in the Berry Petroleum Company acquisition and include over 1,900 acres. For 2014, the company anticipates spending approximately 16 percent of its total oil and natural gas capital budget for California development (www.linnenergy.com).

MBI Project Highlights

• Plan and Permit Implementation

  • Federal Biological Opinion and CESA ITP implementation

  • Determining potential for occurrence of state- or federal-listed species

  • Database documentation and management

  • Compliance oversight

  • Annual and quarterly reports to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW)

• Agency Reporting

  • Habitat disturbance

  • Survey tracking

  • Post-construction compliance surveys

  • Results of trapping sessions and burrow excavations

  • SJKF den disposition

  • Sightings of Covered Species

• On-call Biological Services

  • Pre-activity surveys for detection of Covered Species

  • Small mammal trapping, relocation and burrow excavation

  • Protocol-level, blunt-nosed leopard lizard (BNLL) surveys

  • Emergency response support

San Joaquin Valley HCP Implementation

• Client: ICF Jones and Stokes/Cardno ENTRIX/S2S Environmental Resource Management, Arcadis, Garcia & Associates, TRC Solutions

• Location: Kern, Kings, and Fresno Counties, California

• Completion Date: Ongoing Since 2011

MBI Project Highlights

• HCP Implementation

  • Electrical transmission and distribution repairs and maintenance, including test and treat sessions and pole replacements

  • Successful take avoidance and HCP compliance during completion of approximately 30 projects from 2012 to 2013

  • Compliance oversight and reporting

  • Maintenance of quality control expectations

  • Recommendation and implementation of species avoidance measures including San Joaquin Antelope Squirrel (SJAS), SJKF, and BNLL

  • Participation in calibration and coordination among consultant team

• On-call Biological Services

  • Coordination with project planners, biologists, construction personnel, and prime contract biological resource staff

  • General and focused biological surveys for listed species

  • Nesting bird surveys

  • Construction monitoring

Chevron San Joaquin Valley Business Unit

• Client: Chevron U.S.A., Inc./Chevron Environmental Management Company/Chevron Technology Ventures/Chevron Business and Real Estate Services

• Location: Kern, Kings, Fresno, and Monterey Counties, California

• Completion Date: Ongoing Since 2001

Chevron is the largest oil and gas producer in California, with the majority of production coming from company-operated leases in the Kern River, Midway Sunset, and Cymric oil fields. Its San Joaquin Valley Business Unit is headquartered in Bakersfield (www.chevron.com).

MBI Project Highlights

• Projects Supported

  • Seismic

  • Oil and gas production wells

  • Inter and intrafield electrical lines, pipelines, roads, and other infrastructure

  • Facility abandonment

  • Solar facilities

• Implementation (avoidance, minimization, and mitigation)

  • Initial project planning regarding threatened and endangered species

  • Staff training (health, environment, safety, and biological resources)

  • Installation and maintenance of buffer zones

  • Excavation and relocation of sensitive species

  • Daily construction monitoring

  • Documentation of take/agency reporting (BLM, and CDFW)

  • Habitat disturbance measurements

  • Restoration planning and implementation

  • Regulatory compliance (CEQA, NEPA, FESA, and CWA)

• On-call Bioogical Services

  • Biological surveys for sensitive wildlife and plants

  • Technical report completion and compliance oversight

  • Assistance with permit applications

  • Coordination with state and federal agencies

  • Maintenance of historical mapping and data archive

Chevron Lokern Habitat Conservation Plan EIS/EIR

• Client: Chevron U.S.A. Inc./URS Corporation Americas

• Location: Kern and Kings Counties, California

• Completion Date: Ongoing Since 2009

MBI has provided technical expertise during the preparation of an EIS/EIR evaluating the Lokern HCP. The area under permit consideration includes four Kern County oil fields (Kern River, Lost Hills, Cymric-McKittrick, and Midway Sunset), and the Lokern Natural Area. Due to the nature of the HCP, analysis has considered the entire area encompassing these fields, not just Chevron-managed lands. The total area being evaluated covers approximately 204,000 acres in the oil fields and an additional 28,000 acres in the Lokern Natural Area.

MBI Project Highlights

• Data and Literature Review

  • Review of orignal survey data and publicly available records

  • Compilation of data regarding potential impacts to biological resources

  • Analysis of 232,000 acres of land (oil field and conservation lands)

• Document Preparation

  • Review of biological resources section and supporting documentation

  • Application of knowledge of oil and gas production activities, permitting issues, effectiveness of minimization, avoidance and mitigation measures

  • Team regional expert for biological resources of the San Joaquin Valley as part of the technical team assembled for the project

  • Collaboration with agency personnel and legal counsel during FESA and CESA permitting activities

• Continuing Support

  • Habitat management and monitoring

  • Annual biological surveys assessing condition on conservation lands (including BNLL, SJKF, SJAS, GKR, and sensitive plants)

Monterey County General Plan/San Joaquin Kit Fox Conservation Strategy

• Client: EMC Planning Group, Inc.

• Location: Monterey County, California

• Completion Date: 2014

Conservation strategies were designed to guide Monterey County in the long-term conservation and preservation of natural resources while protecting private property rights (www.co.monterey.ca.us). Based on the results of literature review, agency correspondence and field studies, an SJKF conservation strategy was formulated for review, approval, and implementation by the County.

MBI Project Highlights

• Providing Technical Expertise

  • SJKF habitat requirements

  • Literature review, agency correspondence and field studies

  • Document review/contributed to formulation of SJKF conservation strategy

• Wildlife Studies within SJKF Habitat

  • Camera station utilization

  • Coordination of spotlighting sessions

  • Identification of canids, badgers, burrowing owls, and other wildlife