Natural Channel Design Engineering, Inc.

Civil engineering for natural channel systems across the southwestern United States, applying geomorphic principles alongside standard engineering practice to solve stream stability issues using natural materials and bioengineering practices.

• River Engineering

  Geomorphic principles combined with standard engineering practice to solve stream stability issues, with decades of experience using natural materials and bioengineering to improve stream function for people and habitat.

• Stream & Wetland Restoration

  Engineering design for restoration and enhancement of ponds, wetlands, and streams, with multidisciplinary consideration of ecological and design criteria and support for design-bid-build or design-build project delivery.

• Erosion Control & Mitigation

  Quantification and budgeting of sediment sources and transport to identify the largest sediment contributors in a watershed and design practices to reduce losses from stream bank erosion, bed erosion, and upland gully and rill formation.

• Stormwater Management

  Urban and rural stormwater management leveraging natural processes to reduce peak discharge impacts on infrastructure and natural channels while improving ecological function.

• Flood Studies & Mitigation

  Professional hydraulic modeling of current and proposed site conditions to inform designers and regulators about impacts on FEMA regulated floodplains.

• Roadway Drainage & Channel Crossings

  Design for stream crossings, drainage, and runoff management using natural stream function principles to minimize impacts on physical and ecological channel functions.

Interdisciplinary natural resource planning to restore and enhance stream channels, waterways, and natural resources, drawing on engineering, ecology, and geospatial expertise.

• Assessment & Planning

  Site assessment and planning spanning geomorphic, hydrologic, and hydraulic analysis; fisheries, aquatic, and riparian habitat analysis; GIS mapping and analysis; stream bed and bank stability; sediment supply and transport; weed management planning; watershed and river master planning; and fish passage.

• Design

  Ecological and geomorphic design for stream restoration and enhancement, erosion control, bank stabilization and bioengineering, fish habitat structures, hydraulic structures, and stormwater drainage infrastructure, delivered as sealed construction documents with detailed specifications.

• Permitting & Compliance

  Permitting and compliance services including Federal Clean Water Act and NEPA compliance, local and state agency permitting, wetland delineation, waters of the US determination, floodplain use permit hydrology studies, stormwater pollution prevention plans, Section 404 permit applications, biological evaluations, and grant writing.

• Geospatial Analysis

  Spatially explicit data collection and analysis including GIS and cartography, LiDAR-derived topographic surfaces, UAV aerial photography and cinematography, satellite-derived multispectral imagery analysis, project suitability and site prioritization, 3D-colorized surface modeling from UAV imagery, and environmental change detection.

• Training

  Workshops in stream geomorphology in the Southwest covering bankfull conditions and the Rosgen Channel Classification System, stream stability assessment using shear stress and bank erosion rates, and bioengineering techniques for habitat and stream stability improvement.

Post-wildfire flood and sediment studies, modeling, planning, and repair of natural systems to reduce downstream flood damage and sediment impacts, using methodologies that mimic natural systems to spread flow, decrease sediment, and stabilize channels.

• Studies
• Modeling
• Planning
• Repair