The Prince William Environmental Bank – P3 Contract for Stream Restoration

In 2007, RES partnered with the Prince William County Department of Parks and Recreation (PWC) to restore approximately 147,000 LF – well over 20 miles – of stream and riparian buffer on almost 2,000 acres of parklands. RES established a public-private partnership (P3) with PWC to enable stream restoration across the County at no cost to the County by combining the benefits of stream restoration and preservation within PWC parks with the demand for stream mitigation credits in the watershed. The Prince William Environmental Bank (PWEB) is the only P3 agreement of its kind in the Commonwealth. All design, permitting, planning, and construction are being implemented by HGS. The most recent project completed under this program is a 7,215 LF stream restoration at James Long Park in Haymarket, VA. HGS provided all design, permitting, and construction for the project. Within the park, 14,850 LF of streams and 109 acres of riparian buffer were protected by conservation easements, while 7,215 LF of impaired streams were restored. HGS field ecology staff currently monitor James Long for compliance with success criteria. Annual reports are submitted to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality and the US Army Corps of Engineers to demonstrate project success.