Environment
Meeting legal and regulatory requirements for environmental protection and improvement is essential.
Making effective use of planning and permitting processes and exceeding standards for environmental management is an opportunity for leadership.
Embedding and delivering positive environmental outcomes throughout the project lifecycle results in improved operational and commercial performance and more sustainable projects. Better for the environment, and better for your business.
What can we do for you?
At every stage in the project lifecycle – from early feasibility to ongoing monitoring and management – we support you to better understand, manage and improve environmental conditions and achieve consents.
When environmental permitting is delivered well, shaped and informed by experts experienced in supporting successful large infrastructure schemes, it facilitates a faster and more efficient planning and regulatory processes. It enables better reputational, commercial and societal outcomes to be achieved.
Our assessment and advice will always be based on achieving the best possible outcomes for your project, organisation, and the communities you’re part of.
An integrated approach to environmental management
Our environmental experts hold deep knowledge of sectors and geographies, so you have access to the experience and skills needed to succeed.
Our multidisciplinary experts work collaboratively, in an integrated way – across design and engineering disciplines, and specialist areas including project management, stakeholder engagement, land referencing and accessibility work – to shape the most effective approaches for your projects.
Specialist support for your planning requirements
We work with you to provide the specialist support and domain insight you need throughout the planning process. We combine core planning expertise, land advisory consultancy and impact assessment, alongside the requirements for major, complex projects – such as air quality, noise and vibration, land quality, arboriculture and forestry, ecology and biodiversity, cultural heritage and archaeology, landscape architecture, and natural capital and ecosystems.
Effective stakeholder consultation for major infrastructure projects
We enable you to inform and engage diverse stakeholder groups, including local communities. Our skilled and specialist team has extensive experience of successful stakeholder consultation and engagement for large and complex projects, and utilising the tools needed to manage those processes well.
The result is that engagement is well-targeted and stakeholder dialogue and insight can be informative, which protects reputations, prevents delays and challenges to projects, and ultimately helps achieve consents and deliver infrastructure that performs better for you, its users, and the communities you are part of.
A303 Sparkford to Ilchester improvements, Somerset, UK. We provided design input into this nationally significant infrastructure project for construction of a dual carriageway section on the A303 between Sparkford and Ilchester, to alleviate congestion and queuing.
Nature Positive: The Inside Story
Join Mott MacDonald and leading experts for a new podcast series on the role of nature in infrastructure with leading insights on emerging best practice, career paths and lasting benefits for people and planet.
Expert environmental, planning, consenting and permitting services
Our highly experienced environmental teams work on major infrastructure projects around the world. We provide local knowledge and support while drawing on international industry leadership and best practice from across our global network of environmental practitioners. 
Meet the team
Our experience
Our expert practitioners have supported major infrastructure clients and projects around the world to shape and deliver planning solutions – establishing better outcomes while achieving consents and meeting regulatory requirements.
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Colwyn Bay waterfront, UKOur assessment examined essential environmental factors, such as impacts on beaches and marine species, and engaged the community and local businesses to assure a plan that would revitalise tourism. A new sea wall provides a hard line of defence and has given the town a new promenade as well as other amenities. This project received a whole team excellence award for sustainability performance under the UK’s Civil Engineering Environmental Quality Assessment and Awards Scheme, CEEQUAL.
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Shoreham Harbour flood alleviation, UKIn this project to provide flood protection over 7.2 km of river frontage, we developed planning applications and managed the contractor. The project prioritised environmental, landscape, and ecological enhancement, even as we delivered best value engineering solutions.
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California High-Speed Rail, USAMott MacDonald provided permitting and right-of-way acquisition services for three segments of the system, each with challenging elements. Palmdale to Los Angeles (65 miles) includes challenging terrain, major seismic fault lines, and densely populated cities. Fresno to Palmdale (162 miles) crosses the Mojave Desert and prime farmland. Los Angeles to Orange County (30 miles) is already used by Amtrak and Metrolink commuter trains.
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HS2, UKTo support the large-scale environmental surveys and analysis and the stakeholder liaison and engagement required by this megaproject spanning a large area of the UK, we deployed our Moata Land Management digital tools to provide accessible, scalable and integrated survey and land access management capabilities. The software enabled hundreds of users to be easily and consistently trained to deliver over 35,000 surveys, 25,000 contact events and 40,000 access arrangements, ensuring the project’s challenging environmental assessment and management needs could be met while delivering improved efficiencies and cost savings.
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Hong Kong International Airport, Hong KongWhen a new, third runway was deemed essential, it was necessary to assess potential effects on marine wildlife, noise impacts and possible effects of building on land previously used to dispose of contaminated mud. Our assessment provided options to balance environmental protection, technical feasibility, cost and operational performance. Hong Kong’s Environmental Protection Department approved our environmental impact assessment and permit.
People and Planet
People and Planet demonstrates and quantifies social and environmental outcomes. It combines publicly available data with project data to assess social and environmental factors alongside project priorities. Risks and opportunities are displayed on maps and dashboards, empowering decisions that create long-term benefits for people and the planet.
