Mr. Brown’s environmental career spans the last 42 years, including several years employed with engineering & environmental consulting firms and the remaining with various federal, state, county, and municipal agencies within southwest and north-central Florida. His experience includes a range of technical environmental assessment, regulatory permitting, project and program managerial positions involving ecosystem evaluations, habitat restoration, and wetland mitigation. Mr. Brown has been employed for the last several years by Alachua County’s Environmental Protection Department as Natural Resources Program Manager. His responsibilities include management, supervision and training of staff conducting evaluations of regulated natural resources associated with proposed residential, commercial and public infrastructure projects throughout Alachua County. He has a B.S. degree (’82) in Soil Science with minor in Environmental Science from the University of Florida.

Mr. Hunter currently leads the wetland and botany service with Copperhead Environmental Consulting and manages the company’s satellite office located in Staunton, Virginia. He began his career in 2015 working as a wetland scientist and wildlife biologist, and has since accrued extensive experience leading wetland delineations, conducting surveys for federal and state listed flora and fauna species and providing maintenance and monitoring services for wetland restoration projects. He completed Master’s level research at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA studying correlations between invasive plant prevalence, environmental factors, and native plant assemblages on wetland mitigation banks. He has worked as a wetland and stream mitigation manager and has led field surveys on large-scale energy projects, roadway expansions, commercial real estate, and federal land improvement projects. Mr. Hunter has developed and implemented botanical inventories and related research, invasive species management, and mitigation monitoring plans across Appalachia, the mid-Atlantic, and the southeastern United States. He was certified as a Professional Wetland Scientist (PWS) in 2023 by the Society of Wetland Scientists Professional Certification Program, and as a Qualified Hydrologic Professional (QHP) by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.

Dr. Michael Liptak is a senior ecologist at EnviroScience, Inc, where he specializes in wetland ecology, wetland restoration, and mitigation wetland design. Dr. Liptak earned a B.S. degree in Biology at the University of Toledo and a Ph.D. degree in Environmental Science at Ohio State University under the noted wetland ecologist Dr. William Mitsch. He has over 25 years of experience in wetlands research and consulting and is a Certified Senior Ecologist (Ecological Society of America). His primary responsibilities at EnviroScience Inc. include wetland mitigation planning, wetland assessments and delineations, technical report preparation, and permitting. Dr. Liptak is a member of the Society of Wetlands Scientists and the Ecological Society of America, and regularly gives seminars on wetland issues and regulations.

Ms. Mower has over 25 years of experience, currently serving as a Principal and Ecological Restoration Lead within CEC’s Pittsburgh Ecological Services practice. She specializes in aquatic resource restoration and compensatory mitigation, having designed miles of stream restoration and acres of wetland restoration during her career. Beginning her career with the US Army Corps of Engineers in Norfolk, Virginia (VA) and serving as a fisheries biologist with the VA Game and Inland Fisheries Department, she has in-depth regulatory experience to help navigate clients through difficult local, state, and federal permitting projects. While working for one of the largest energy industries in the state of WV and PA, her working knowledge and understanding of major decision-making strategies provides valuable insight to improve short and long-term cost savings understanding industry priorities, goals, and objectives. As a Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner (CERP), Ms. Mower has completed Levels I through IV Rosgen Training and has taken weeks of additional stream and wetland design training, led by experts in the fields of low-tech process-based restoration and natural channel design techniques. Publishing several papers and articles across her career and presenting at specialized conferences across the country, she is a recognized expert within the industry. Ms. Mower is currently working on projects in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, as well as in West Virginia within the Appalachian Mountain and across the country in Colorado. Her role is to lead designs in CEC’s Pittsburgh office, while supporting other ecosystem restoration projects across CEC’s nationwide footprint; and continue to expand CEC’s ecological services footprint across the county.

Mr. Murray is a senior scientist with AtkinsRealis. He holds a B.S. degree in Environmental Sciences – Geology from Georgia College & State University and is a professional wetland scientist in the United States as well as a qualified hydrologic professional in the State of Tennessee. He has nine years of experience in geomorphic assessments and environmental compliance/permitting. Mr. Murray is responsible for leading wetland delineations, stream classifications, habitat assessments, 404 permitting, buffer variances, and protected species surveys. He has participated in a number of water resources delineations, protected species relocations, bridge surveys, and plant identifications.

Mr. Ritchie brings over 18 years of experience in environmental consulting, with expertise spanning site investigation, remediation, restoration, regulatory compliance, wetland science, ecological assessments, and effective root zone studies. He holds a B.S. degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Tulane University and an M.S. degree in Soil and Water Science from the University of Florida. Mr. Ritchie began his career with the Coastwide Reference Monitoring System of Wetlands in coastal Louisiana, developing a strong foundation in field-based environmental work. Over the years, he advanced into project management roles within regional consulting firms, gaining a comprehensive understanding of both field operations and regulatory processes. In 2022, Mr. Ritchie founded Ritchie Ecological and Environmental Solutions (REES), an environmental consulting firm serving clients across the oil and gas, energy transmission, and renewable energy sectors. He is recognized as a subject matter expert in a range of disciplines, including botany, plant ecology, agronomy, soil science, wetlands, and regulatory compliance, and has provided expert testimony in litigation involving these topics. Mr. Ritchie’s restoration work is particularly focused on the rehabilitation of former oil field sites and post construction wetland restoration along pipeline rights-of-way. His approach focuses on restoring native habitat through practical solutions to support sustainable land and resource management.