Our Team

Our Team

Agrologists, biologists, geologists and forestry professionals comprise NorthWind's diverse team of environmental professionals. Since its inception in 1999 NorthWind has grown to nearly 40 employees. Our field personnel and projects span the province and our experience is just as vast. You name it; one of us has done it from farming and forestry to oil sands research and equipment operation. We specialize in reclamation and revegetation, soil classification, environmental site assessment and remediation with over 200 years of combined experience in the field.

Our StoryOur Team

Sean Steed, B.Sc., P.Ag.

Sean, President of NorthWind, has over 20 years of management and supervision experience in the field of soils consulting. He specializes in project management, site investigation and soil survey. He has extensive experience in the reclamation of disturbed lands including wellsites, roadways, pipelines, and borrow pits. Sean also specializes in pipeline soil surveys / mapping, soils handling during pipeline construction, Phase 1, 2 & 3 Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs), Detailed Site Assessments (DSAs), Reclamation Certificate Applications including Alberta Environment and Landowner Negotiations, and Pre-construction Site Assessments. Sean has experience working with Aboriginal groups on wellsite certification and environmental audit projects and has extensive experience liaising with industry, landowners and government.

Luke Hincz, RPFT

Luke has over 20 years of combined professional experience in wellsite reclamation and forest management. He specializes in liability reduction and draws on his experience working as an area reclamation consultant as well as a forest officer for the Alberta Government. Luke managed his own reclamation consulting company for many years before joining NorthWind as their Vice President, Corporate Development. His breadth of experience yields a unique perspective on liability management. He has developed and managed several successful liability reduction programs for various clients with an emphasis on cost effective strategies and quick results.

Paul Yusypchuk, B.Sc., P.Ag.

Paul has worked in the field of soils consulting since 1995. Paul specializes in soil surveys, reclamation of disturbed lands, DSAs including the completion of Reclamation Certificate applications, and conducting Pre-construction Site Assessments. Paul has managed numerous remedial excavations in both white and green areas and has been involved with the reclamation mitigation of pipeline right-of-ways and pipeline inspection during construction. His experience also includes conducting baseline soil and ecological surveys for large EIA projects, and being involved with the development of the Conservation and Reclamation plans for those projects. Paul has gained extensive field experience in soil classification across Alberta and applies this experience when working on various reclamation projects.

Carli Costall, B.Sc., P.Ag.

Carli has worked in the land reclamation field since 2001. She has conducted DSAs, Pre and Post-reclamation Assessments, Reclamation Certificate Applications, supervised wellsite reclamation, and has completed Phase 1 ESAs including air photo interpretation. She also has experience in contaminated soils excavation including confirmatory sampling and data analysis. Carli has program management experience including proposal and budget development, and stakeholder communication and invoicing. Carli has been involved in completing soil and landscape surveys for proposed pipelines as well as supervising soil handling during pipeline construction.

Robbie Price, R.T. (Ag.)

Robbie has worked as an Environmental Scientist since 2004. He has worked on several research projects throughout Alberta, primarily in the oil sands region. These projects include assessments of different soil replacement strategies in the region, and monitoring the success of sites at various stages of reclamation. His experience handling and classifying soils throughout Alberta provides a strong understanding of soil quality for a variety of land uses, such as agricultural capability and forest ecosystem productivity. He has worked on baseline Environmental Impact Assessments for soil salvage and reclamation purposes for large scale mining operations throughout Alberta, and has experience auditing reclamation for these operations as well. Robbie also has experience performing Phase 1 and 2 ESAs, DSAs, Pre-construction Site Assessments for wellsites and pipelines, and Post-construction Reclamation Assessments for pipelines. His background in biology and ecology gives him an integrated approach to problem solving in his current scope of work.

Conrad Baranec, B.Sc., P.Ag.

Conrad has worked as an Environmental Scientist in the field of soil reclamation, remediation and environmental assessment since 2005. He has experience in Phase 1 and 2 Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs), wellsite reclamation and remediation activities, management and planning. Conrad has managed numerous remediation projects in both white and green areas of the province and has managed many reclamation projects as part of large scale reclamation programs. Conrad has extensive experience in grain and forage production. His knowledge of sustainable agricultural practices has strengthened his field experience and knowledge regarding soil management and reclamation practices in the Oil and Gas Industry.

Ingrid Van Herk, M.Sc., P.Biol.

Ingrid has worked as an Environmental Scientist since 2008. In that time she has been primarily involved in performing Pre and Post-construction Site Assessments for pipelines and DSAs for wellsites, performing Phase 1 and Phase 2 ESAs as well as minor work in Remediation and Reclamation on wellsites throughout Alberta. Ingrid also has experience conducting vegetation and soil surveys for Environmental Impact Assessments. She has also spent a significant amount of time conducting soil surveys for soil salvage and reclamation purposes in the oil sands region. Ingrid is familiar with the Alberta Tier 1 and 2 Soil and Groundwater Remediation guidelines and is certified to apply the Subsoil Salinity Tool for complex sites. Prior to consulting, Ingrid was a research assistant at the Boreal Forest Warming Project in Northern Manitoba. This research provided Ingrid with experience in project management, report writing and data analysis. Her background of forest ecology and conservation biology has resulted in a wide range of skills including plant identification, soil classification, and various vegetation and soil data collection techniques.