Environmental permitting and regulatory requirements can affect project schedules, construction sequencing and development risk, making early coordination an important part of infrastructure delivery. Burns & McDonnell has appointed Steve Haler to lead its Environmental Services Group serving the South Central region, with the team headquartered in Houston.
Haler succeeds Jake Merriman in the regional leadership role. The group provides environmental services across project development, construction and operations, including planning, permitting, engineering, stakeholder engagement and compliance.
Haler has more than two decades of experience working on major infrastructure projects in the United States and Canada. His project background covers electric transmission and substations, pipelines, power generation and industrial facilities.
His responsibilities have included developing permitting and regulatory strategies, coordinating with federal, state and local agencies, and managing multidisciplinary environmental programs. The experience spans activities that can intersect with project planning and construction execution, particularly where regulatory requirements must be addressed before or during field work.
For owners and contractors, environmental requirements can involve multiple agencies and permitting processes depending on project type and location. Integrating those activities into project planning can help establish regulatory requirements before construction advances into later stages.
The Houston-based Environmental Services Group will continue supporting infrastructure clients across the South Central region. Its services extend through multiple phases of a project rather than being limited to preconstruction permitting.
The group's work includes environmental planning, engineering, permitting, interested-party engagement and compliance. These functions can support projects involving energy, utilities and industrial development, sectors represented in Haler's previous project experience.
Burns & McDonnell operates from more than 75 offices worldwide and provides engineering, architecture and construction services. The employee-owned organization was founded in 1898.
The appointment places environmental planning and compliance leadership within a regional team serving infrastructure projects at different stages of delivery. For owners and construction teams, the scope of the group highlights the role of permitting, agency coordination and environmental compliance alongside engineering and construction planning.
The leadership change also brings infrastructure experience covering several project types into the South Central environmental organization, supporting work where environmental requirements are integrated with broader project development and construction activities.
Source: Burns & McDonnell.
