Barnard isn’t just about building. We set out to improve the world we all live in, both through the projects we undertake and the way we approach them. (Be sure to take a look at our Renewable Energy Group.)

Round Butte, Oregon
The selective water withdrawal project offers Lake Billy Chinook and the pristine Deschutes River a promising future by providing effective fish transfer and ensuring cooler water temperatures downstream. It has been recognized as “the only known floating surface fish collection facility coupled with power generation in the world,” according to owners, Portland General Electric and the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation.

Owens Lake, California
Once a 130-square-mile lake up to 30 feet deep, Owens Lake has been mostly dry since the City of Los Angeles began diverting water in the early 1900s. Through a series of projects, our work has contributed to the reductions of some of the roughly 4 million tons of airborne dust arising from the lakebed annually.

 Cornell University, New York
In the 1990s, when chlorofluorocarbons were being phased out of cooling systems because of their contribution to depletion of the ozone, Cornell University became determined to replace all cooling systems on campus with a chilled water delivery system. Barnard, in concert with the university, built a system that today conserves energy while tapping the depths of Cayuga Lake for a renewable resource – cold water. The Lake Source Cooling Project reduced campus energy consumption for cooling by more than 80 percent.

Butte, Montana
You’d never know looking at this vital streambed today that we’d removed more than a million cubic yards of mine tailings and contaminated soil. At the Lower Area One Operable Unit near this mining town in Montana, we re-established a meandering streambed and wetlands to encourage the presence once again of wildlife and fish.

Everglades National Park, Florida
Making sure that the Everglades remain healthy for generations to come has been the focus of several recent Barnard projects. Working with Florida’s ACCELER8 Program, we built test cells designed to enhance the quality and flow of water from Lake Okeechobee and the agricultural regions of central Florida before these waters reach the Everglades. Building reservoirs and stormwater treatment areas allows the products of agriculture and human use to naturally filter out before the water is released to the wild.

 

Weber Dam, Nevada
More water in a seismically sound reservoir means more alfalfa in surrounding fields for the Walker River Paiute Tribe in western Nevada. Our realignment and reconstruction of the dam’s embankment created more capacity, which has also enhanced fish habitat and recreation possibilities for area residents.

Dawson Creek, Oregon
Hillsboro is a community known for its lush beauty near Oregon’s Willamette wine-producing region. So city officials and residents were reluctant to endure the impacts of sewer construction down the middle of a wetlands and stream corridor. Our experience in taking care while building from uni-mats successfully saved the natural setting from disruption and damage when we carefully installed new pipe.