Across the globe, the past year was one of expansion and reopening. FirstCarbon Solutions (FCS) was no exception, diving headfirst into new partnerships, new leadership, and new challenges worth tackling. Join us as we reflect on our progress in 2022, as well as the bright future ahead.
Successful Start for FCS-Cameron-Cole Partnership
In late 2021, our parent company, ADEC Innovations, announced the acquisition of Cameron-Cole, a full-service environmental services and regulatory consulting firm. As Cameron-Cole became fully integrated into the ADEC family in early 2022, the importance of this partnership was immediately apparent.
With lots of cooperation and teamwork, we are well into the process of melding our companies’ services, systems, and cultures, and we are excited to continue onward in 2023 and beyond.
Blog Highlights
The FCS blog continues to be an engaging, reliable source for showcasing the company’s expertise and services. Highlights from 2022 include:
6 Steps to Becoming a Sustainable City: Sustainable cities will be the foundation for lasting resiliency, playing a critical role in testing, implementing, and sharing solutions for the good of global communities. In this blog, we explored the crucial role data plays in creating—and maintaining—a sustainable city.
Preparing an Addendum to Determine Sufficiency of Previous EIR: Navigating the legal changes and requirements involved in developing an addendum of a previous Environmental Impact Report (EIR) can be quite a challenge. This blog explores our team’s success in overcoming these challenges in the Bishop Ranch 6 Residential Development in San Ramon, California.
How to Address PFAS in Your Water Supply: The proposed designation of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as hazardous substances may lead to rapidly developing restrictions on PFAS use and advisory levels, including on your drinking water supply. In this blog, we discuss how to address the PFAS testing and treatment process, and to better understand the potential for litigation.
Welcoming New Leadership
In August, ADEC Innovations was thrilled to name Brian Myller as president of its global professional services businesses. As president, Brian is responsible for leading the global growth strategy across ADEC Innovations’ professional services brands and business.
Brian’s first blog post, "The Role of Diverse Data: Reflections from a Multidisciplinary ES Career", highlights his experience and musings from a long career in environmental science. His follow-up post, "Environmental Science or Systems Science?," discusses the growing spectrum of data sources associated with environmental science and engineering.
Latest Projects
In 2022, FCS was awarded our 119th on-call contract, further cementing our role as a trusted ES partner across the state of California. As we continue reshaping risk into positive impact and value, FCS’s projects do the same. Here are just a few highlights from 2022.
Oak Park Properties Specific Plan EIR
FCS prepared an EIR for a 15-acre plan area to include a public library, housing, athletic fields, and necessary infrastructure improvements. As there was public interest in potential impacts related to light pollution and glare, the EIR also included nighttime visual simulations using state-of-the-art 3D modeling, GIS, and photo-editing software.
Fresno Highway Sign Project Visual Simulations
FCS prepared visual simulations for an outdoor advertising company, as well as animated videos to demonstrate line of sight and duration of visibility. These simulations allowed the client to understand the economic viability of each sign and make informed decisions regarding applications for zoning variances.
100 38th Street Richmond Affordable Housing
FCS assisted in a proposal to create two multi-family housing buildings in Richmond, California. One was an adaptive re-use of an existing health center, transforming it into supportive housing while retaining its unique architectural features. FCS prepared a CEQA checklist to determine whether an EIR addendum was appropriate, as well as created technical reports for air quality, biological resources, cultural resources, GHG emissions, and noise.
South San Francisco General Plan EIR
FCS provided environmental services for the City of South San Francisco General Plan Update, Zoning Code Amendments, and Climate Action Plan Program EIR. The General Plan Update is a forward-looking document that will serve as the blueprint for the City of South San Francisco’s vision through the year 2040.
Moving Forward
As we reflect on 2022, we see the groundwork for an even brighter 2023—both for FCS and the world. Our fantastic (and growing!) team thanks our clients and communities for supporting this impactful work in environmental risk, compliance, and assurance.
FirstCarbon Solutions (FCS), an ADEC Innovations company, comprises over 100 individuals offering due diligence, technical analysis, planning, environmental compliance, permitting, and mitigation/monitoring services for public and private projects. FCS has more than 30 years’ experience navigating the complexities of CEQA and securing project approvals. To keep up with our latest projects and industry news, follow us on LinkedIn.
