Neel Mehta
Parsons has received an award from the American Planning Association in recognition of its West Pond environmental review efforts for a national recreation area in New York.
The company said Monday it accepted the Honor Award for Outstanding Environmental Planning Project from APA’s federal planning division following the conclusion of its environmental assessment work at the Gateway National Recreation Area under a contract with the Interior Department’s National Park Service.
“Parsons’ collaboration with the National Park Service resulted in numerous ecosystem and visitor use benefits while solving multiple engineering and community challenges in this dynamic environment at Gateway National Recreation Area,†said Carey Smith, Parsons group president and an inductee into Executive Mosaic’s Wash100 for 2017.
The environmental evaluation covers Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge within the recreation area’s Jamaica Bay Unit in Queens and Brooklyn, New York.
A team of engineers, resource managers and planners at Parsons teamed up with the National Park Service to develop a plan that aims to increase the ecological resilience of the West Pond and loop trail from future storm surges and other environmental impacts as well implement adaptive management initiatives.
The Parsons team also collaborated with at least 450 stakeholders to carry out workshops with resource specialists and community groups during the project planning stage.
