People

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William Shiels Principal

With more than 35 years of experience in resource and environmental planning, Bill has provided consulting services to a wide range of both public and private clients.  This experience has allowed him to work effectively with a variety of other professionals, including engineers, architects, planners, and land use attorneys, to develop projects that meet both environmental and economic objectives.  Obtaining a desirable outcome for development proposals often requires carefully thought‐out site plans and project designs that meet the owner’s objectives while also gaining the support of the regulatory agencies from whom permits must be secured.  Bill’s responsibilities on projects have included environmental assessment, feasibility analysis, master planning, regulatory analysis, multi‐ disciplinary project permitting, and expert witness testimony.  Since forming Talasaea Consultants in May of 1981, Bill has undertaken and/or managed nearly 1,400 projects, all of which have involved one or more of the following services: Critical areas analysis and delineation (streams, wetlands, shorelines); wildlife, fisheries, and/or habitat studies; water quality monitoring/assessments; site planning; impact assessments; conceptual and detailed mitigation design; Local, State, and/or Federal permitting; construction administration and oversight; and performance monitoring. As the principal of Talasaea Consultants, Bill will work closely with the firm’s ecologists, landscape architects, and technical staff in support of all phases of the project, from initial ecological assessments and development planning, through regulatory analysis, permitting, and mitigation final design.  As project manager, he will monitor project budgets and workflow to ensure the timely and efficient completion of project deliverables.  Bill will also work closely with the owner and other design professionals on the project team, such as architects, civil engineers, and landscape architects, to ensure that environmental issues are considered from the initial site planning efforts through final project design.  One of Bill’s primary objectives throughout the project will be to communicate Talasaea’s mitigation strategy clearly and effectively to regulatory agency personnel in order to facilitate the timely and cost‐effective acquisition of permit approvals.

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David R. Teesdale Senior Ecologist

Mr. Teesdale has over 25 years of experience, throughout the Pacific Northwest, as a wetland ecologist, botanist, wildlife biologist, and environmental restoration specialist. His project experience includes wetland and stream delineations; ordinary high water mark determinations; preparation of critical areas study reports, biological evaluations, mitigation plans, and performance monitoring plans; water typing; hydrology and shallow groundwater monitoring analyses; determination of normal precipitation patterns; stream assessments and surveys; culvert evaluation for fish passage; wetland functional assessment and credit-debit analysis; watershed analysis and assessment; and vegetation sampling and plant identification. Mr. Teesdale is also experienced in the use of mapping-grade GPS technologies for GIS-based mapping of critical areas.

As senior wetland ecologist, David provides accurate and thorough identification, delineation, and documentation of all critical areas, habitats, and species of concern. He is directly responsible for ecological fieldwork, including wetland delineations, ratings, and functional analyses, and works directly with the project surveyor to ensure that all critical areas identified on and near the project site are accurately mapped. David’s analyses of on‐site critical areas are based on Best Available Science and are scientifically defensible. David is also directly responsible for formal reporting of critical areas information, and is a primary author of Critical Areas Studies, Biological Assessments, Endangered Species Assessments, Shallow Groundwater Evaluations, and any other ecological or scientific studies necessary to document critical areas, threatened and endangered species, or critical habitats. David works closely with the design team at Talasaea to ensure that mitigation plans are designed to adequately compensate for the lost functions and services of impacted critical areas in order to meet permitting requirements.

Education:

  • MS, Ecology, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, 1986
  • BS, Biology, Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa, 1981
  • Environmental Project Management Certificate, UW Extension


Professional Registrations:

  • Professional Wetland Scientist PWS# 2471
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Regional Supplement Training
  • DOE Ordinary High Water Mark Determination Training
  • DOE Wetland Rating System Training for Western Washington
  • Advanced Hydric Soils, Wetland Training Institute, Inc.
  • Wetland Plant Identification, Everett Community College

Relevant Project Experience:

  • Olympic Pipeline Replacement under Ebey Slough, Snohomish County, WA
  • Northwest Trek Wildlife Park Facilities Expansion, Pierce County, WA
  • Lake Washington-Sammamish Mitigation Bank, Redmond, WA
  • North Creek Levee Biological Evaluation, Bothell, WA
  • Clear Creek/Dyes Inlet Biological Evaluation, Silverdale, WA
  • Community Pier and Float Project, Anderson Island, WA
  • Sammamish River Enhancement, Bothell, WA
  • Forensic Wetland Delineation for Kitsap County Prosecutor’s Office v. Kitsap Rifle and Revolver Club, Kitsap County, WA
  • 320-acre Housing Development, Pierce County, WA