Infrastructure

NorthWinds provides a range of professional services supporting infrastructure projects. These services extend to all aspects of project development, from planning, permitting, construction, operation and decommission. Current infrastructure projects include roads and highways, hydro dams and transmission lines.

Services

Projects

Our Services

Discover Our Expertise

Environmental Assessment

Environmental baseline studies (design, implementation) including vegetation, wetlands, fish, wildlife and Species at Risk

Wildlife and wildlife habitat assessment
Vegetation assessments and management
Wetland assessments as per the Ontario Wetland Evaluation System, via certified Evaluators
Monitoring program development
Right-of-way and route selection
Fisheries Assessments
Indigenous and stakeholder outreach, and government coordination and negotiation

Permitting

Natural Environment reporting in support of aggregate pit or quarry permits/licences
Species at Risk Permitting (federal and provincial)
Overall Benefit Permitting for provincial Species at Risk, namely Woodland Caribou
Species at Risk Mitigation Plan development

Species at Risk

Species at Risk surveys (eg. Caribou, Eastern Whip-poor Will, Bats, Turtles, Songbirds) and permitting
Impact assessment, avoidance, and mitigation strategies
Project support for requirements under Ontario’s Endangered Species Act (ESA) including:
- Completion of Information Gathering Forms (IGF)
- SAR Mitigation Plans
- Overall Benefit (OB) permits
- Monitoring

Current Projects

Continue scrolling to learn more about a few of our current projects.

Wataynikaneyap Power Permanent Wildlife Survey Plots

Wataynikaneyap Power Transmission Project

Giiwedin Environmental Services, a Limited Partnership between NorthWinds and Lac des Mille Lacs First Nation, has been selected by Valard Construction to conduct the Permanent Wildlife Survey Plot (PWSP) monitoring program in support of the Wataynikaneyap Power Transmission Project. The PWSP program is being conducted in partial fulfillment of the Endangered Species Act permit issued for the Project, primarily associated with Woodland Caribou and Wolverine. Giiwedin field staff have successfully established survey plots, and are now completing the second year of field data collection for long-term monitoring program. Field data include site condition, human and wildlife activity, and changes to the site, as well as incidental wildlife sightings and other relevant habitat information.

Ontario Ministry of Transportation

Hewitson River Culvert Project

NorthWinds provides environmental consulting service on MTO infrastructure projects. These include terrestrial summary reports and fish and fish habitat assessments and fisheries support on active work sites.

Waasigan Transmission Line Training Skills and Development Program

Hydro One Networks Inc.

NorthWinds has been hired by Hydro One to deliver the Training Skills and Development Program, a series of workshops for several Indigenous communities impacted by the Waasigan Transmission Line project. This training includes two parts: the preliminary module is focused on the regulatory aspects of the transmission line, the environmental assessment and approval process. The second module is intended to provide community members with basic field knowledge, skills, and techniques necessary to support an environmental assessment, and provide participants the practical skills necessary to gain employment completing environmental monitoring work.