Stream Restoration

Healthy Streams: A Valuable Resource
A healthy stream system is one of our most valuable resources. It can serve as a source for the water we drink. It provides vital habitat for fish and wildlife. It is critical to flood prevention. From recreation to hydropower generation, our streams have a direct impact on the quality of life we enjoy.

Yet many miles of our nation’s streams are impaired. Human activities have disrupted the natural equilibrium of most streams, resulting in erosion, siltation, and water quality degradation. Impaired streams have reduced diversity and number of fish, plants, zooplankton, and aquatic invertebrate species that create a balanced ecosystem.

How PBS&J Can Help
Federal and state governments recognize the importance of healthy stream systems. Projects impacting streams call for special permitting, often requiring compensatory stream restoration.

PBS&J provides bioengineering restoration services that return streams to natural, self-sustaining, aesthetically pleasing channels and fulfill all regulatory permitting requirements. Our scientists are trained in the Rosgen principles of stream restoration, a system that efficiently categorizes streams and provides a tested process to restore them to fully functioning systems.

PBS&J has successfully completed stream restoration projects for private clients and government agencies, including airports, roadways, and watershed restoration projects. Working with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation through the 401 Water Quality Certification process, we pioneered the first stream restoration in the state that used bioengineering techniques.

What We Offer
Successful and practicable stream restoration designs require a multidisciplinary team. Our engineers, biologists, fluvial geomorphologists, landscape architects, and CADD operators provide a full range of stream restoration, planning, and construction oversight services. We can manage the entire process for clients – preparing the permit applications, designing and implementing stream channel and streambank restoration plans, and performing preand post-project environmental monitoring to evaluate and ensure the project’s success.

PBS&J provides stream restoration services and can assist in the following areas:

• Regional Curves Development
• Reference Reach Locations
• Existing Stream Conditions Survey
• Restoration Design
• 404/401/CAMA/Soil and Erosion Control Permitting
• Construction Oversight
• Restoration Monitoring
• Macrobenthos Collection and Identification
• Wetland Delineation and Mitigation
• Watershed Assessment and Management Plans
• Stormwater Management.