Projects Completed

Highmark Associates, although a newly formed consulting firm, is rich with experience in technical hazards and emergency planning.  The skill set used to manage prior projects are directly germane to developing hazard mitigation plans.  Many of the projects required strong organization skills, the ability to communicate effectively with regulators, responders, administrators, and the general public, and in depth knowledge of applicable codes and regulations.     

Highmark Associates principals developed a Weapons of Mass Destruction Train-the Trainer course for Story County, Iowa. The project required assembling technical experts to develop individual modules for each type of technical hazard.  Trainers from response units within the county were presented the materials in a classroom setting and provided with instructor and student manuals, canned presentations with trainer notes, and other resource materials.   All the materials needed to conduct the training were included in an easy to navigate compact disc.   

Highmark Associate principals successfully managed a major site remediation project located on Iowa State University property.  Over 250,000 cubic feet of thorium-contaminated soil and debris were removed from the site, packaged in shipping containers and sent to licensed waste sites.  The total cost of the project was less than one million dollars; this represented a fraction of the cost of other projects of similar scope and size conducted in the state.  The savings were due to a novel approach employed in the removal and segregation of the waste, and utilizing waste contracts already available through the Department of Energy (DOE).  A large portion of the project was funded through DOE Community Assistance Grants.  The site was released for unrestricted use as a result of the remediation project.   

Principals of Highmark Associates managed the environmental contamination assessment of the Ankeny Dairy Farm Land transaction.  This was a complex project involving a number of regulatory agencies, potentially responsible parties and potential buyers.  Some of the agencies and entities involved in the process included; the Army Corps of Engineers, EPA, IDNR, IDPH, the City of Ankeny, DMACC and John Deere Company.  Activities managed included an EPA Environmental Site Inspection, radiological site survey, IDNR Brownfields Program assessment, asbestos removal estimates, remediation cost estimates and investigation and cost analysis of site remediation options.