Texas Central, developers of the high-speed train, has selected Resource Environmental Solutions (RES) as the project’s provider of ecological mitigation services to help protect and enhance natural ecosystems and the environment throughout construction and operations.
Operating out of its Houston offices, RES will oversee plans to comply with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) requirements that the project restore, enhance and preserve wetlands, streams and environmentally sensitive habitats along the train’s route between Houston and North Texas, Texas Central said in a news release.
RES has led several high-profile projects across the state and nation to safeguard local flora and fauna and the sensitive ecosystems they inhabit.
Texas Central said its partnership with RES reflects its commitment to low-impact design strategies and environmental stewardship, avoiding and minimizing ecological effects during construction and operation of the passenger line.
“The elite team of ecologists at RES will help safeguard local ecosystems, and this is one more example of our approach to protect the land and wildlife in a delicate manner,” said Texas Central’s Bill Tucker, the project delivery director.
“As Texans, RES understands the importance that Texans place on preserving the natural beauty of our great state, and we are confident that this systematic approach to restoring and preserving sensitive ecosystems will result in widespread improvements across the region and beyond,” Tucker said in the release.
RES joins a team of global leaders designing and building the Texas train, and it will be responsible for protecting the natural beauty of Texas while also equipping the state to be economically competitive in the 21st century.
“We believe that by engaging with partners dedicated to low-impact design and development, it’s possible to achieve both environmental sustainability and advanced infrastructure,” said Elliott Bouillion, RES CEO. “The Texas high-speed train is an excellent example of how a modern, green infrastructure approach can be harnessed for both ecological and economic benefits.”
RES will develop a far-reaching plan to rebuild and restore wetlands and streams in the impacted watersheds as part of a comprehensive mitigation strategy. Preliminary ecological planning calls for stream and wetland restoration, enhancing the viability of several sub-watersheds close to the route.
Brian Trusty of Dallas, vice president of the Audubon Society, praised the move to bring on RES.
“At Audubon, we believe the project is a win-win opportunity for both Texans and the wildlife in our state,” he said. “Providing large-scale transportation opportunities that work to reduce carbon emissions, while supporting further economic prosperity and connectivity between the Dallas and Houston metro areas, is progressive and forward-looking. Partnering with RES ensures the project will be done right, and we are thankful to see Texas Central take this step.”
The project’s scale will allow RES to identify not only isolated pockets along the route that require restoration, but also entire complexes of streams and wetlands suitable for improvement and conservation. Specifically, RES will select mitigation sites and designs that collectively improve the ecological functions of broad areas, including some near the Trinity River, Navasota River, Spring Creek and Cypress Creek, the news release said.
The company’s experience and Texas roots give it the expertise to support all aspects of the project, such as working with landowners, regulators, local communities and others. This approach has earned it respect from the environmental industry, and its work creating a mitigation area for Louisiana’s Maurepas Swamp was honored this year by the Environmental Business Journal.
Other prominent projects have included the Bois d’Arc Lake Mitigation Area, the largest permittee-responsible mitigation project in U.S. history. The 16,600-acre reservoir being built in Fannin County encompasses more than 8,500 acres of wetlands, 70 miles of streams, 3,200 acres of native grasslands and 2,600 acres of non-wetland forests.
The Texas Central train is estimated to remove more than 14,630 cars per day from interstate 45, offsetting emissions in an area covering four counties that are in air quality nonattainment status, the news release said.
The project, besides offering seamless, safe and convenient travel between the nation’s fourth and fifth largest economies, will create an estimated 10,000 jobs each year of construction and 1,500 full-time jobs when operational, and generate a range of indirect economic benefits upon completion.
The Texas Central new high-speed train will connect North Texas, the Brazos Valley and Houston with a 90-minute trip.
The company’s market-led approach is backed by investors, not government grants, a new business model for infrastructure advances, the release said.
www.texascentral.com
– FWBP Staff