PFAS: An Emerging Contaminant for Brownfield Sites

Source: https://www.defence.gov.au/Environment/pfas/PFAS.asp

PFAS may seem like an obscure scientific acronym, but we encounter these chemical compounds—dubbed “forever chemicals”—in our food, water, air, and soil.

PFAS are perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, a family of over 4,000 man-made surfactant compounds manufactured to repel water and oil/grease. Since the 1940s, PFAS have been widely used in commercial and industrial applications, including many consumer products that can be found in every household: Teflon non-stick pans, food packaging, stain-resistant upholstery, and more.

Recent studies point to PFAS as a growing concern for communities and clients, including at water systems and brownfield sites. Aspect has recently worked on sites with PFAs concerns, and we summarize the history, background, and current regulations (both the state and federal scale) around this emerging environmental concern.

A Brief History of PFAS: Why Should We Care?

In 1956, researchers discovered that PFAS compounds bind to human proteins, and by the 1970s PFAS were found to accumulate in human blood. In 2000, the American Chemical Society published a study showing the distribution of people with detectable concentrations of PFAS in their blood was at a global scale. Research groups worldwide, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), are increasingly evaluating the toxicity and potential human health risks of PFAS exposure.

Though limited human epidemiological studies have been conducted to date, laboratory animal studies suggest that adverse health effects due to PFAS may include irregular fetal development, cancer, and liver and thyroid damage, among others.

PFAS in the Environment

Source: https://pfasproject.com/2018/10/02/analysis-of-state-by-state-differences-in-pfas-regulation/

PFAS are released into the environment primarily from locations with long-term use of aqueous fire-fighting foams (military sites, airports, and fire-training facilities), industrial facilities that produce metal plating or directly produce PFAS, and landfills that receive municipal or industrial wastes. One of the main exposure pathways for the general public is via PFAS-impacted drinking water.

Of about 6,000 public water systems monitored by the EPA for PFOA and PFOS between 2013 and 2015, approximately 80 public water systems were found to contain the compounds at concentrations above the EPA’s Lifetime Health Advisory level of 70 parts per trillion (ppt). In Washington State, Aspect is incorporating testing for select PFAS compounds into drinking water aquifer monitoring programs at the request of municipalities.

Current State vs. Federal PFAS Regulatory Context

Despite the public and regulator awareness and general acceptance of the risks associated with PFAS exposure, PFAS compounds are not currently identified as hazardous substances in federal regulations to enforce investigation and cleanup standards. In 2019, the EPA released a PFAS Action Plan outlining an approach for their response, which is in progress. The plan suggests that in the relatively near future, we can expect to see at least the two most well-researched compounds, PFOA and PFOS, listed as hazardous substances at the federal level, by Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), or other pathways.

In the meantime, 28 states are forging ahead with state-level regulations in lieu of EPA enforceable action and CERCLA status. In Washington, the state legislature recently passed two bills limiting uses of PFAS in food packaging and Aqueous Film-Forming Foams (AFFFs) in 2018 (Engrossed State House Bills 2658 and 6413). Additionally, the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is developing an amendment for Chapter 246-290 of the Washington Administrative Code (WAC) to address PFAS in drinking water in Washington. This amendment includes state action levels for the EPA’s two target compounds, PFOA and PFOS, as well as three additional compounds (PFHxS, PFNA, and PFBS).

The DOH is proposing a more protective approach than the EPA by setting the draft state action levels for PFOA and PFOS for Group A public water systems at 10 ppt and 15 ppt, respectively—lower values than the EPA’s Lifetime Health Advisory value of 70 ppt. DOH is projecting to finalize the amendment in 2021.

Learn More About PFAS

PFAS Draft Chemical Action Plan (CAP) – October 2020
Long-awaited Washington state plan (a joint publication by the DOH and Ecology) that offers recommendations to reduce PFAS exposure to humans and the environment. The public comment period is currently open until December 7, 2020.

Click here to access the public comment form.

Washington State Department of Health
Resource to learn more about PFAS, and a guide to statewide and nationwide initiatives to address public health concerns related to PFAS.

EPA PFAS Action Plan
National PFAS Action Plan detailing how the EPA is addressing PFAS identification, mitigating exposure, and engaging with affected communities. Refer to the EPA’s homepage for more information.

Safer States
A nationwide coalition of advocates, policymakers, and scientists who collect data on current PFAS policies and guidelines by state, which is then used to make PFAS policy and mitigation recommendations to the federal government.

PFAS-Free Products
A comprehensive list of products and brands from apparel to cookware to furniture that do not contain PFAS.


PFAS Next Steps in the Pacific Northwest

In October 2020, Washington State Departments of Health and Ecology published their PFAS Draft Chemical Action Plan (CAP). The draft CAP has been in development since 2016 and includes recommended actions to reduce human and environmental exposure based on a comprehensive assessment of known and potential sources and occurrences of PFAS in Washington State. The public comment period started on October 7, 2020, and closes on Monday, December 7, 2020. DOH and Ecology are projecting to finalize the CAP in 2021.

Applying State-of-the-Science Insight to PFAS Cleanup and Monitoring

The lack of federal PFAS guidance creates significant challenges for industry and public officials as they assess environmental liability and community impacts. Aspect is working on several projects to help clients problem-solve PFAS challenges, including applying state-of-the-science PFAS data to help municipalities evaluate and monitor wellhead protection programs.

On December 9, 2020, Aspect Senior Geologist Ali Cochrane and Associate Environmental Scientist Kirsi Longley will be presenting on PFAS at the CLE Bootcamp, an annual event for the continuing education of legal professionals, hosted by The Seminar Group. If you are interested in arranging a PFAS presentation for your team/organization or want to learn more about how Aspect can provide PFAS support, please reach out to Ali Cochrane and Kirsi Longley.

Community Water Supply Solutions: A Success Story

Since construction 30 years prior, yield in two of this rural town’s (in southern Washington state) drinking water wells has been in a steady, long-term decline.

At these problem wells, results of regular water-quality testing were showing increasing amounts of iron and silica, and concentrations of sodium were exceeding advisory levels. More recently, wellfield operators were reporting the sound of water cascading down the casing beneath the pumphouse, and could hear the hiss of air entrained in the discharge line. Utility managers with the town were growing concerned about the longevity of the wells and whether they could continue to meet demand.

The local PUD, who operates the wells for the town, wanted to get things back on track. But where to start? Which of the problems should they address first? And how would they know they were investing in the right fixes, and making the best decisions for their customer owners? The PUD brought in Aspect to problem solve and rehabilitate the wells to recover the lost supply.

Water pumped from one of the town’s water supply wells with high iron oxides and turbidity.

Well Rehabilitation Detective Work

For the PUD, our initial approach examined the usual suspects of declining wellfield performance: well construction records, changes in water quality, regional trends in aquifer levels, and the condition of the pump and motor. As part of our review, we also used a slimline downhole camera to observe the condition of the well screen and casing. Our “nano” camera is designed to be deployed without having to first pull the pump—a significant time and money saver for everyone involved—and provides real-time information to diagnose what’s happening underground.

Our investigation revealed that the water supply wells were suffering from both chemical and physical complications: poor well construction and high iron-sulfide content in the source aquifer was fueling a booming population of slime-forming bacteria. Although each of these problems could be addressed with short-term fixes, they represented long-term maintenance costs and perpetual service interruptions for the PUD. While nearly any drilling outfit is capable of clearing obstructions and replacing damaged casing, our hydrogeologists provided big-picture perspective of the subsurface. Instead of attacking the symptoms of well decline with temporary solutions, we looked to understand the root cause of water problems and make recommendations that will improve pumping capacity for the long-term.

Reducing Long-Term Cost and Gaining Higher-Quality Groundwater

As an alternative, Aspect recommended a phased approach to rehabilitate the water source. First, to address water needs today, we prescribed a series of well rehabilitation treatments to restore the well performance. Second, to address water needs in the years to come, we outlined steps for developing a new source in a higher-quality body of groundwater. In addition to reducing long-term cost, this approach is consistent with the PUD’s mission to serve their customer owners.

Water filtration system necessary to treat water prior to distribution.

Contact Aspect to Learn More About Well Rehabilitation Services

Successful well rehabilitation results from a methodical process.

Successful well rehabilitation results from a methodical process.

If you have questions or want to learn more about our well-rehabilitation services, please contact Jon Turk or Andrew Austreng in our Water Resources Practice.

Spotlight on PNW Water Resources Leaders: Twisp Mayor Soo Ing-Moody

Twisp’s Mayor, Soo Ing-Moody was recently profiled in the Seattle Times to shine a spotlight on her leading this rural and vital Northern Washington State town – a world-class destination for internationally-known cross country skiing and sunny season hiking and water recreation.

Over many years, Aspect played a key part in helping secure the Town’s water rights, which the Town worked on for almost two decades to make sure sensible development proceeds in this sought-after North Washington area.

Twisp Mayor Soo Ing-Moody
Photo Credit: Mike Siegel / The Seattle Times

Under the leadership of the Mayor, Aspect helped find and negotiate the purchase of enough water rights to grow for more than 20 years. The Town and Aspect also worked with Ecology to help obtain the necessary permits to make the transfer possible.

Read more about the Town and Mayor’s leadership here.

New Western States Water Rights Marketplace Opens

Western Water Market – a new online marketplace to buy and sell water rights – launched in February in Washington state, with plans to eventually expand water rights listings across several western states. WWM looks to streamline a patchy water rights marketplace process, which traditionally has relied mostly on word of mouth to connect buyers and sellers.

Aspect welcomes this site as another way for our clients to reach potential buyers and sellers, and we have migrated several of the water banks we manage to this listing service.

Learn more about Western Water Market in this interview with WWM founder Kristina Ribellia in this recent article with the Capital Press.

Zap! Pow! Remediators Unite: Environmental Science in a Comic Book

Aspect feels lucky to have a strong connection with Western Washington’s Huxley College of the Environment in Bellingham. Associate Scientist Kirsi Longley (Huxley College alumnus; featured on page 38 of the below comic!) and Principal Hydrogeologist Steve Germiat have guest lectured there over the years, talking the ins and outs of environmental remediation along with the day-to-day realities of being an environmental consultant. In fact, Steve Germiat presented to the class in March 2020, just a day before they stopped meeting on campus due to COVID-19 risks.

We wanted to turn the spotlight on this innovative and creative group taught by Professor Ruth Sofield. In just one example of creative communication, the students in the Science, Management, and Communication of Contaminated Sites (SMOCS) have taken their learning of environmental remediation and powered it into comic form. The comic is an innovative form of public outreach – and communicates the complexity of environmental cleanup to reach all audiences.

Given the recent COVID-19 public health recommendations, the class is now meeting exclusively online thus highlighting, even more, the importance of unique science storytelling that can reach many audiences even when not physically in the same location.

See the latest example of The Remediators here: https://issuu.com/ruth.sofield/docs/volumefive

Leadership Training in the Built Environment: One Engineer’s Perspective

The built environment (i.e., the man-made environments we live and work in) is developed by interdisciplinary teams of planners, architects, engineers, permitting and construction experts, and other professions. Given the complexity of building in today’s urban world, setting aside time outside of project delivery to connect—and learn from—each other is challenging. The Urban Land Institute (ULI) is the world’s oldest and largest network of real estate and land use professionals and with over 1,000 member organizations. ULI’s Northwest chapter is a thriving network of 1,000 professional members and facilitates connection and professional development opportunities in the region.

Aspect’s Associate Engineer Adam Griffin recently completed ULI’s six-month Center for Leadership (CfL) program with a cohort of 36 fellow professionals. Adam shares some thoughts on this program and the value of trying something different to grow professionally.

Adam (center left, middle row in solid blue shirt) and his Center for Leadership Cohort

 What was the program like?

My cohort was the 5th of the CfL program, which consisted of 6 sessions culminating in a team deliverable and presentation to the Puget Sound Regional Council. The regional ULI staff have refined a program that weaves leadership development into the region’s built environment vision, projects, and challenges. The leadership element is founded on your DiSC® profile[1] in the first session and evolves to sessions and projects where teams are designed based on leadership profiles. Session themes ranged from “Urban/Rural Divide: Finding Common Ground” to “Resilience in the Age of Disruption” and were hosted at some of the region’s coolest spaces (i.e., the Amazon sphere)—my favorite spot was Taylor’s Shellfish Farms on West Samish Bay on a bluebird day!

What did you learn?

A lot! Awareness of my Steady leadership profile (from my DiSC® assessment)—tendencies, strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for growth—and how to apply this awareness to my own professional growth. This program was a departure in how I’ve historically used my professional development time and I learned that when you step outside of your comfort zone, growth and learning are inevitable. I re-learned that relationships are the best investment of professional time. I also learned about the vision and ambition of our region, and what a tremendous opportunity we currently have to shape it.

[1] DiSC is a non-judgmental communication tool that stands for Dominance, Influence, Conscientiousness, and Steadiness. It’s similar to a Myer Briggs approach but focused on describing someone’s communications style—including priorities, motivators, and stress triggers.

From Historic Sawmill Dump Site to Seattle Workforce Housing

The historic Pioneer Square district—the front porch to Seattle’s downtown waterfront—is the City’s first neighborhood. The area is shaped by its proximity to the waterfront, active seismology, and over 150 years of urban development, infill, and industry– including housing one of Seattle’s first true startups, the Yesler Lumber Mill.

Built in the early 1850s, the Yesler sawmill was a steam-powered sawmill on the shores of the growing downtown Seattle.
Photo Credit: www.historylink.org

These confluence of factors also trigger specific criteria for building in the neighborhood today – taking historical preservation compliance, seismic codes, and a tricky subsurface into account.

In the heart of the neighborhood, at 165 South Washington Street, Aspect is helping Johnson & Carr, LLC guide the development of an eight-story workforce housing project. The site – currently a vacant pit – formerly housed an apartment building bearing directly on weak urban fill and sawdust. That building was damaged in two separate earthquakes – the 1949 (Olympia) earthquake and 2001 (Nisqually) earthquake, leading to it being condemned and demolished.

The project site, currently a vacant pit that’s sat unused for years, awaits design and construction of a new 8-story workforce housing building.

The Complexity of Seattle’s Original Sawmill Dumpsite

This project site is directly influenced by the past in several ways. It was originally a tidal marsh, used over a century ago, among other things, as a dumping ground for sawdust from the Yesler Mill. This means current project design must grapple with up to 25 feet of sawdust fill in the subsurface. As white settlers filled the surrounding waterfront during the Klondike Gold Rush era, the former tidelands were swallowed up by all manner of new buildings and roads in the haste to infill the neighborhood (as seen on the figure below).In addition, several seismic sources contribute to the seismic risk at the site, including the Seattle Fault Zone which is less than 2 miles away, and the Cascadia Subduction Zone, which can trigger a magnitude 9 earthquake. The seismology, historical uses of the project area, and decades and decades of man-made development have only added to the complexity of building here.

The project site was the dumping ground for sawdust from the nearby Yesler mill. The map on the right shows how much the downtown Seattle shoreline has changed in the last 150 years.

Next Steps: Geotechnical, Seismic, and Engineering Problem Solving

To set the stage for building design and construction in this complicated subsurface, Aspect is conducting several geotechnical and environmental evaluations to develop design recommendations to solve the challenges posed by the historical fill and sawdust at the site. Our detailed evaluations include:

  • Conducting a site-specific seismic response analysis which includes determining dynamic properties of the sawdust to model its behavior under seismic loads

  • Conducting deep foundation design to transfer building loads to underlying competent soils

  • Evaluating and mitigating risk associated with environmental issues which are ubiquitous with the historic fill throughout the Pioneer Square area.

The Vision: Realizing More Affordable Workforce Housing for the Community

These evaluations will be critical to shepherd the development through the City of Seattle’s permitting process and help create more workforce housing in the area. Workforce housing aims to provide a more affordable rental option within high real estate cost areas for workers essential to the local economy, such as service workers, police officers, fire fighters, teachers, nurses, and medical personnel.

When completed, Pioneer Square will gain a new eight-story building with street-level commercial space below seven stories of residential workforce housing.

Seattle Area Hits Landslide Threshold

With the heavy rains late last week and this weekend, the Seattle area was pushed past the U.S. Geological Survey’s landslide threshold. Check the USGS website for current conditions and see how the rainfall intensity-duration threshold for landslides is calculated.

Additionally, this MyNorthwest article from 2017 provides an explanation of landslide risks in our region with tips on how to spot warning signs.

Seattle Commits $110 Million to Create Almost 2,000 Affordable Homes

The City of Seattle will make the largest award in the City’s history to invest $110 Million for 1,944 new affordable homes. This announcement continues the recent affordable housing funding the City has made over the last several years.

This is great news for the region as well as the group of sponsoring organizations that are leading the projects. Organizations like Mt. Baker Housing Association (MBHA) and the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda) are instrumental in developing and promoting access to housing for the community. To help them reach their development goals to create more local housing options, Aspect is currently providing environmental cleanup, regulatory negotiation, and public outreach support to MBHA and SCIDpda on several affordable housing projects in Seattle.

The ongoing Maddux development provides 150+ affordable housing units close to transit in the Mt. Baker neighborhood. The City of Seattle’s recent investment news will help create close to 2,000 affordable homes like this across the region.

Our work with MBHA includes three projects in the Mt. Baker and Rainier Beach neighborhoods. We’re also helping SCIDpda, along with Lake Union Partners and Capitol Hill Housing, on the 3-block Goodwill site in the International District.

Learn more about Aspect’s work to help our partners transform and restore urban sites into affordable housing communities here: http://www.aspectconsulting.com/affordablehousing

James Packman Presents on Urban Environmental Planning to University of Washington Class

Aspect’s James Packman presenting on environmental planning as a profession to University of Washington students

Aspect Senior Hydrologist James Packman presented on environmental planning for the second year to a class in the College of the Built Environment at the University of Washington.

The students in the “Planning as a Profession” class learn about urban planning from a different guest lecturer each week who is a professional working in their field. James presented environmental planning from a holistic point of view—from the skills and interests that lead a person to the profession and the different disciplines working in the industry to the laws and regulations that drive project design, permitting, and building and examples of water-focused planning. His overarching message focused on interdisciplinary skills, and he gave examples of Aspect projects where collaboration between disciplines was vital to both win the work in a competitive consultant market and address the environmental elements.

One example of an urban planning project is Seattle’s SEA Streets Project, which changed several streetscapes in residential neighborhoods to decrease stormwater runoff.

For example, James discussed how planning and executing urban stormwater management projects – such as the City of Seattle’s innovative SEA Streets program in north Seattle – have many benefits: reducing stormwater runoff before it reaches the sewer and downstream water quality; improving habitat diversity; narrowing streets that make cars slower and increase safety, and increase street aesthetics and property values.

For the homework and in-class activity, James introduced the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). In small groups and guided discussion, the students learned about the many environmental planning elements required to complete a SEPA checklist. Through this exercise, they developed a list of skills and areas of knowledge required for each SEPA topic, which will be a valuable reference as they transition into their careers and work in urban planning.

Philanthropy in the Science and Engineering Industry: Our Approach

Like many professional services firms, Aspect promotes a giving back philosophy as a core part of who we are. Defining what philanthropy means to a company brings big-picture questions to ensure an equitable approach that makes the most impact – Is it simply donating money? Is it donating brain power and time? Who makes the decisions on where, how, and when to contribute?

Aspect recently went through a shift in how we approach donations of time and money, which culminated in less a top-down and more of a bottom-up, many voices program: something we call “ACT” or Aspect’s Community Team. We were honored to be featured in the latest issue of Engineering Inc, the American Council for Engineering Companies (ACEC’s) national magazine while we’re honing our approach. Read the feature here.

How does your organization coordinate charitable giving? Any suggestions for best practices?

Let us know and we’ll share your feedback.

Aspect Geologist and Parent Welcomes New Blakely Elementary School

Ali Dennison, Senior Engineering Geologist - Photo by Luciano Marano | Bainbridge Island Review

With a new school year upon us, the Bainbridge Island Review has an overview of the last days of construction on Bainbridge Island’s new Blakely Elementary School. Aspect’s Geotechnical Engineering group has been involved with the project since 2016, from initial design phases through construction of the new 51,000 square foot school.

Aspect was founded in 2001 on Bainbridge Island, and we take particular pride in the projects we work on in our hometown. It’s especially meaningful for our Senior Engineering Geologist Alison Dennison—her son and daughter will start third and first grade, respectively, in the new Blakely building. Read more about Ali’s geologic investigations to support the project in the Bainbridge Island Review article.

Attracting Talent – Simple Steps, Great Results

Lindsay Pearsall - Director of Human Resources

Earth science and engineering firms are in a buyer’s market in 2019. Anyone in a leadership position in the Architectural/ Engineering/ Construction industry knows the mantra of “Always Be Recruiting.” At Aspect, we are no different. Our success (and our clients’) hinges on our ability to find and retain the most talented consultants in our industry. It’s essential, then, that our Human Resources department takes a very thoughtful approach to finding and hiring this top-tier talent.

Recently, at RecruitMAX 2019 – one of the A/E/C industry’s top professional industry conferences—Aspect’s HR Director Lindsay Pearsall shared a segment of her approach with a presentation “How to Build a REAL Candidate Pipeline with Phone Interviews and Informational Interviews.”

Some takeaways of Lindsay’s presentation are:

  • Why treating your candidate like a client should be your #1 priority

  • Conducting informational interviews to go beyond your current hiring needs

  • Simple solutions, like how and when to follow up with individuals, to maintain relationships

Lindsay’s presentation stressed that hiring managers need to remember how difficult it is to be a candidate. By flipping the script and treating candidates like a client, we are able to humanize the experience. Whether someone is hired or not, they should have an expectation of a positive experience and feel valued as a professional and as a human.

See current job openings for Aspect here: https://www.aspectconsulting.com/careers

Perspectives on Water Resources Engineering: Taylor Dayton in the Zweig Newsletter

Taylor Dayton, Project Engineer

Aspect’s Taylor Dayton was recently interviewed in the Zweig Newsletter on a range of topics — from transitioning from working at NASA as a biochemist to an engineer, to learning water rights legends, project management lessons learned, and navigating an early career in the water resources field.

Read about it here: Apple orchards and water rights

Engineers Without Borders USA Spotlights Seattle Volunteer Eset Alemu

In honor of National Volunteer Month, Engineers Without Borders USA (EWB-USA) put the spotlight on engineers who give their time and talents to improve infrastructure in communities around the world. Their blog post features an interview with Eset Alemu, a Seattle-based engineer who is co-leading the Puget Sound Professionals of EWB-USA for several projects in Nicaragua. She also is the current president of the ASCE Seattle Section and is helping with transition for the President-Elect, Aspect’s Principal Geotechnical Engineer Henry Haselton, who will step into the role in September.

Read EWB-USA’s full post here.

Aspect’s Principal Geologist Dave Cook, who has volunteered with Engineers Without Borders USA since its inception, says, "EWB-USA is engineering with soul. I, like many, still believe in founder Bernard Amadei's ethos and why this organization was originally founded. Engineers, scientists and other professionals should all be able to work in harmony to deliver technical skills that are so hard to come by in the developing world."

In addition to Dave’s contributions to EWB-USA, Aspect has supported EWB-USA financially over the past several years.  Aspect supports all volunteers, particularly those whose mission is capacity building around Earth + Water problems.  https://www.ewb-usa.org/donate/

Taylor Dayton Talks Science and Engineering Careers on May 9 in Wenatchee

On May 9, Water Resource Engineer Taylor Dayton is giving a presentation to the Society and Natural Resources students at Wenatchee Valley College. The lecture will explore technical career paths in earth and water resources, with a deep dive on Taylor’s early career experience as a water resources engineer and showcasing a variety of local water resources and water rights projects she has worked on over the last four years in Aspect’s Wenatchee office.

Carla Brock Chairs WA’s Geologist Licensing Board

Associate Geologist Carla Brock was recently appointed as Chair of the Washington State Geologist Licensing Board by her fellow board members. The board is comprised of six licensed geologists and one public member and is responsible for licensing geologists; updating the rules and regulations governing the practice of geology in the state of Washington; and investigating violations of the regulations. Carla is starting her second year of a four-term appointment to the board.

Washington State is a member of the National Association of the State Boards of Geology (ASBOG), which develops standardized written examinations for administration by the 32 member states and Puerto Rico, assessing qualifications of applicants seeking licensure as professional geologists. In addition to her duties on the state board, Carla participates as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) on ASBOG’s Council of Examiners (COE). The COE is comprised of SMEs from across the country and convenes twice a year, immediately following administration of the tests, for examination development and validation workshops. The COE spends two days reviewing test questions and answers to maximize the fairness and quality of the examinations as measures of competency. The COE is not all work, each meeting includes lunchtime presentations by local experts on interesting and relevant topics and a third day in which local experts lead a geologic field trip.

Carla just returned from the spring COE, which was held in Nashua, New Hampshire and is proud to support ASBOG but also enjoys the opportunity to connect with colleagues from across the country and to learn about local geology.

Geologists love a good roadcut! A quartz syenite ring dike intrudes the pre-Mesozoic tonalite with mylonitization at the contact.

Geologists love a good roadcut! A quarts syenite ring dike intrudes pre-Mesozoic tonalite.

Geologists ogling an outcrop in central New Hampshire.

Geologists stomping through the snow in central New Hampshire in search of an outcrop.

Recognizing World Water Day

Water is a scarce resource for many worldwide. The United Nations has designated today, March 22nd, as World Water Day to raise awareness of the billions of people—about 3 in 10—living without safe water. As earth science professionals, this message strikes a chord with Aspect staff who spend many of our work hours towards helping clients find, produce, and manage water. Supporting NGO goals – like the UN’s “water for all by 2030” – is important to us. Whether it’s organizations like UN or Engineers Without Borders USA, please join us in learning more about these worthy causes.

https://www.worldwaterday.org/

A Thousand Photos to Better Storytelling: The Aspect Photo Contest

In the earth science consulting world, our work is innately photogenic. Stream gauging at a quiet bend in the river. Installing new pin piles at a pier on a scenic city waterfront. Even the “grimy” photos, like well sampling at a contaminated site, provoke interest and fascination. Staff take pictures to document their technical work and those same photos are the lifeblood of firm branding and storytelling. However, Aspect’s marketing team, tasked with telling our firm’s story, can struggle with harvesting high-quality visuals. The photos are out there, yet they may be buried in forgotten file locations or staff’s work phones. Just asking “Have you got any good pictures?” yields scattershot results, which often then means reusing the same tired photos again and again.

So, a year ago, our marketing group decided that we needed a better way to consistently draw out quality photos. What better incentive than a friendly contest?

I love it, it gives me glimpse to what our field people are up to, since I am in the office 100% of the time and not a field person, I envy them the fun they have when in gorgeous location in beautiful weather and not so much when they are bundled in the snow and rain.

- Mirka Ramsey, Accounting Lead

The Idea: Prizes and Public Recognition

We started with a weekly raffle, awarding tickets to all contributors and bonus tickets for the week’s best photos – all leading up to a cash prize drawing and winners that we celebrated at quarterly firm-wide meetings. After the first call for entries, staff responded with 54 pictures. Where had these all been hiding?

If we had only received those first 50 photos, that would have been a modest success. However, we were surprised and amazed that the photos kept coming week after week. We knew we had something special when, at the first quarter’s staff meeting, the photo contest became a highlight. It turned the meeting into an informal art exhibit, where the employees and their beautiful, funny, and, often times, poetic snapshots of field and office life were the stars of the show. The idea continued to gather steam and, by the end of the year, we’d received over 1,100 photos.

It’s awesome! I love seeing the work that other folks are doing. I think it improves our company culture: gives us something to talk about with staff we might not interact with otherwise, and also gives me a better sense of pride in some of the work that I’m doing when I share my photos.

- Hannah McDonough, Staff Geologist

The Takeaways

One thousand photos later, if there’s one general takeaway, it’s that being curious and asking staff what they are working on—and learning what they’re excited about—is always worthwhile. The photos gave our marketing team materials to help tell Aspect’s story, but also delivered an unexpected benefit: they shone a light on firm culture. Over the photo contest’s first year, we found that:

The field staff’s photos remind everyone of the aesthetics of working in environmental consulting – they are outdoors a lot in both beautiful settings and grimy conditions. It’s a way to appreciate the beauty and commiserate when things are grim.

It’s not just about the projects. We got many photos of what staff are doing outside of work –biking trails, climbing mountains, running races, vacationing in places sunnier than the Pacific Northwest.

Sharing our work brings staff of all levels together around firm culture and put names to faces before people may have met in person.

Aspect staff are now in the field, at industry functions, or just in the office, with an eye out for photo opportunities.

Submitting on a regular basis helps keep taking photos in the front of my mind so I have more photos of my projects which helps when putting together reports. I enjoy seeing others as it gives insight into what the rest of the company is up to. I often get a sense of a “can-do” attitude mixed with people enjoying what they are doing.

- Bryan Berkompas, Senior Hydrologist

A Hub for Storytelling

As the photo contest enters Year Two, the marketing team now has an established source of photos to illustrate our work in proposals and spotlight our culture for recruiting. Field staff have told us that taking photos helps them with their project work and report writing. And everyone enjoys seeing what our colleagues are up to and takes pride in our collective work.

Follow our photographers on Aspect’s Instagram page.

From Brownfields to 500 Units of Affordable Housing – Aspect in the News

The Daily Journal of Commerce takes a look inside Mt. Baker Housing Association’s pioneering affordable housing work in South Seattle. Aspect, overseeing the environmental effort for the MBHA team, continues to drive the idea of brownfield sites as unique opportunities for affordable housing – including the 160+ unit Maddux project and the 350+ unit Grand Street Commons project.

READ HERE

Learn more: www.aspectconsulting.com/affordablehousing