Co-Presented by Eric Huff, CPESC, Vice President & Joel Cantu, CEI, Environmental Project Manager, VRX, Inc.
Eric Huff is a Vice President at VRX, Inc. and serves as the environmental group manager. In this role, Eric is responsible for client development, employee recruitment and retention and growing the environmental practice area. Associated duties include budget management, invoicing, quality control and project staffing.
Eric has served as the environmental compliance manager for several significant projects and programs, including the 35Express Design-Build, the Chisholm Trail Parkway Section 6 Design-Build, and the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) Program Management Office (PMO). In these roles, Mr. Huff was responsible for ensuring that construction projects were compliant with all local, state, and federal environmental regulations and commitments. Mr. Huff provided management and technical oversight of environmental compliance teams to address permits, issues and commitments for more than 200-miles of transportation corridors.
Eric is experienced in wetland delineations, permitting and mitigation; threatened and endangered species matters; vegetative assessment and management; tree surveys; hazardous materials, and stormwater compliance. He is knowledgeable in environmental permitting and compliance as it relates to transportation projects, commercial and residential development, and natural gas exploration and production.
Eric is a Certified Profession in Erosion and Sediment Control (CPESC), a Certified Wildlife Biologist (CWB), and an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist.
Joel Cantu is a Houston-based Environmental Project Manager at VRX. Joel brings 11 years of experience as an environmental scientist to the industry. He is proficient with the environmental aspects of residential, commercial, and heavy/highway projects during construction. Mr. Cantu ensures compliance with local, state, and federal regulations regarding stormwater permitting and Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan (SW3P) compliance. He is highly knowledgeable in conducting detailed SW3P inspections as well as overseeing BMP installation and maintenance. In addition, Mr. Cantu consults with all levels of construction personnel, as well as local, state, and federal regulatory personnel to maintain SW3P compliance and maintain professional relationships.
Joel serves as an environmental compliance inspector on Construction Engineering and Inspection (CEI) contracts for multiple Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) projects across Texas. Joel follows all current Stormwater Management guidelines and verifies SW3P and Environmental Permits Issues and Commitments (EPIC) sheet requirements are followed. He also verifies appropriate permits are in place for all contractor Project Specific Locations (PSLs). He maintains the SW3P working drawings and documentation in accordance with the Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems (TPDES), and Construction General Permit (CGP).
Joel is a Certified Erosion, Sediment and Stormwater Inspector (CESSWI) as well as a National Institute for Certifications in Engineering Technologies (NICET) Level II Underground Utilities Construction Stormwater & Wastewater System Inspector.