ABOUT US

Ambleside Environmental is a full service environmental consulting company, serving Metro Vancouver since 1999. We are made up of a passionate team of environmental professionals, providing efficient, innovative, practical and cost-effective solutions to our Clients’ potential or known contamination issues in the public and private sector.

Specifically, we specialize in property environmental assessments, investigation, planning, remediation, and reporting. Ambleside employs a strong project management approach towards project completion. We deliver on our commitments and respect the trust and confidence our Clients have placed in us to deliver the best solution.

At Ambleside, we always strive to perform above your expectations, and industry standards.

Ambleside has:

Full insurance coverage for all consulting projects in the form of General Liability Insurance and Professional Errors & Omissions Insurance,
A proven track record working with federal, provincial, and municipal regulatory agencies ensuring the adherence to all applicable regulatory requirements with no sanctions by WCB.

OUR TEAM

Meet the Team

Ambleside brings together a multi-disciplinary team of environmental consultants in Metro Vancouver with specialized backgrounds across a range of sectors and industries. Our team structure is designed to maximize the knowledge base brought forward to each project, thereby supporting successful outcomes to the project. Ambleside retains the services of a group of great people chosen for in-depth knowledge, innovative problem solving, and an ethical approach and dedication to environmental issues.

Liisa Wilkinson, P. Eng., Project Engineer, Principal

As Principal, Liisa oversees the overall management, operation and growth of the company. She strives to uphold professionalism, and responsibility for all projects that Ambleside is retained to provide services to.

Liisa has a broad background in Contaminated Sites projects from initial assessment to confirmation of remediation. She has been involved in the Environmental Engineering sector for over 20 years and has completed numerous projects in the residential, commercial and industrial land use sectors. Liisa has also designed and implemented specialized environmental remediation techniques involving onsite and offsite options throughout Ontario, Alberta and BC. She has a diverse technical background, which allows her to design and manage multi-disciplinary environmental programs, including such disciplines as soil investigation, hydrology, water quality, project management and regulatory liaison.

Liisa’s educational background includes a civil engineering degree with a specialization in environmental engineering, giving her a valuable understanding of both the construction elements of the projects along with contaminant identification, transport and environmental fate.

Alison Lui, B.A.

Alison Lui is Ambleside’s “Countess” and keeps all facets of Ambleside’s financial systems running smoothly. Alison has nearly 20 years of financial management experience working with organizations with 5 to 50 team members. She has managed budgets of up to $6 million. Alison worked with the Ambleside team to upgrade the accounting systems to bring time-recording and bookkeeping into the 21st century with a nearly-paperless system. She has a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of British Columbia and is currently working towards her professional accounting designation.

Alison ensures Ambleside is in compliance with federal and provincial authorities including quarterly and annual tax remittances and annual corporate tax filings. She prepares monthly, quarterly and annual financial statements and management reports. She also provides support in compilation of budget information and uses this data for the preparation of monthly billings to clients in a timely and accurate manner. Alison oversees all the bank reconciliations, payroll and benefits administration and ensures our vendors are paid. She maintains overall responsibility for all aspects of a/p, and a/r and works to ensure compliance with the Accounting Standard for Private Enterprises (ASPE). At year end she works closely with our accountants to provide a seamless transition from old to new fiscal year and provides detailed information as required for all year-end tax filings.

Christa Rutherford

Christa Rutherford is Ambleside’s Office Administrator. An energetic and well-organized professional, Christa has well over a decade of experience in administrative support services. She has invested a good deal of time volunteering for local causes and is currently working towards her Business Administration Degree.

At Ambleside, Christa is responsible for the administration of our office, including front office administration, scheduling clients & projects, and overall organizing and planning. She is proficient in preparing correspondence, finalizing reports, and not to mention, brilliantly capable of performing detail oriented work with frequent interruptions. Christa ensures that nothing leaves our office without being properly branded and looking professional. She also manages stocks and inventory and maintains account files. Of course, Christa has incredible multi-tasking abilities and a keen attention to detail, which is why she is able to provide excellent customer service and is such an asset to our team.

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Learn About Our Ethical Framework

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“At Ambleside, we firmly believe in sustainability and take great pride in our environmental initiatives.”

— Liisa Wilkinson, Principal - Ambleside Environmental

At Ambleside Environmental (Ambleside), we understand the the economic, social and environmental choices we make as a corporation affect the lives of our shareholders, customers, employees and communities. That means operating our business ethically and according to the principles of honesty, transparency and accountability.

Environmental Policy

Because it is home to every living thing, the Earth matters – making what Ambleside does all that more important. Our Environmental Policy is the touchstone for all of our environmental initiatives. We are committed to supporting the environmental compliance of our customers, and maintaining a strong track record of our own.

The following principles set out Ambleside’s approach to managing its environmental impacts:

To conduct our internal operations in a manner consistent with environmental protection and the principles of sustainable development;
To promote an environmentally responsible workplace by educating and motivating employees to become more involved in resource conservation;
To promote efficient use of materials and resources throughout our office including water, electricity, raw materials and other resources, particularly those that are non-renewable;
To recycle and re-use products wherever possible and practical;
To recognize environmental protection as one of our guiding principles and a key component of sound business performance;
To concentrate on serving our local community (i.e. the “30-km Diet” model). This reduces Ambleside’s carbon-footprint to project sites and allows us to have in-depth knowledge regarding the total project;
To commute to multiple job sites in order to eliminate multiple trips;
To reduce/eliminate commutes to job-sites by using effective E-based strategies and communication methods;
To use electronic forms of communication and reporting over traditional methods;
To partner with suppliers and professionals who demonstrate a commitment to environmental quality through their business practices;
To source resources locally;
To operate in compliance will all relevant federal, provincial and municipal environmental legislation;
To use pollution prevention and environmental best practices in all we do;
To integrate the consideration of environmental concerns and impacts into all of our decision making and activities;
To avoid unnecessary use of hazardous materials and products, seek substitutions when feasible, and take all reasonable steps to protect human health and the environment when such materials must be used, stored and disposed of;
To purchase and use environmentally responsible products that have been selected based on criteria including low toxicity or environmental hazard, durability, use of recycled materials, reduced energy and/or water consumption reduced packaging and ability to be recycled, refilled or refurbished at end of life;
Where required by legislation or where significant health, safety or environmental hazards exist, to develop and maintain appropriate emergency and spill response programs;
To continually improve our environmental performance by periodically reviewing our environmental policy in light of our current and planned future activities.

Health and Safety

At Ambleside, safety influences our actions, guides our decisions and shapes our culture. We believe our employees are entitled to productive, healthy careers in an incident-free workplace. We extend this philosophy further, to include our family members, our contractors, our customers and every community in which we work. Safety matters in all that we do and we keep safety top of mind in all aspects of our lives.

Ambleside’s staff complies with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of BC Code of Ethics to act at all times with fidelity to the public’s needs, and to hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public, and the protection of the environment.

Communities

We are committed to the community that we serve. While it is the government that gives us an operating permit, it is the community and our community relations partners who ultimately grant us their permission. Ambleside’s interactions are guided by our desire to build and maintain value-added, long-term relationships with communities, Aboriginal peoples, regulatory agencies and non-governmental organizations to support our ongoing community involvement processes and social license to operate. The majority of Ambleside’s staff reside on the North Shore and are committed to their community through economic and social involvement.

Community and Environmental Achievements

Ambleside’s Principal, Liisa Wilkinson, P. Eng. acted as Environmental Project Manager for the first LEED certified Multi-Unit High Rise (MUHR) in Vancouver, The Silva. This project involved a multi-disciplinary team of environmental professionals and engaged an “open-book” process with the City of North Vancouver Development Planning department in regards to setting out construction and development standards for LEED certified buildings and development.

Liisa has served on the Board of Pacific Metals Ltd. a multi-faceted recycling business and has worked closely with Regional Recycling in the development of recycling facilities and property development growth for the business.

Liisa Wilkinson held the position of Chair of the District of North Vancouver Heritage Commission Board and led the Commission to develop a comprehensive Heritage Plan and Preservation of Significant Heritage Buildings.

Liisa Wilkinson held a commission position on the City of North Vancouver Advisory Design Panel during the Official Community Plan development planning process for Lower Lonsdale and initiatives for environmental sustainable urban growth.

Liisa has served on several non-profit and community volunteer Boards, including City Reach Care Society – World Vision East Vancouver Food Program, The Mel and Marty Jr. Foundation (External Board role to the development of the Zajac Ranch), Inglewood Parent Participation Preschool, Parent Advisory Commission, and Whistler Blackcomb Freestyle Ski Association, Canadian Parents for French (West Vancouver Chair).

Governance

Corporate governance refers to the way in which a company is governed, how it makes decisions, its processes and policies, and how it deals with the various interests of its many stakeholders, including shareholders, customers, employees and the broader community. Our vision, mission and values underpin how we behave as a good corporate citizen.

Vision:

Our respected entrepreneurial team is a recognized leader in environmental consulting services in the Lower Mainland, offering personal and professional service to satisfy our Clients diverse environmental needs.

Mission:

Ambleside Environmental is dedicated to Client satisfaction, through providing high quality, sustainable environmental solutions while mitigating risks to human health and the environment. We strive to have our valued Clients to return to Ambleside Environmental for all of their environmental needs, time and time again.

Values:

Dedication to ethical business practices;
Respect for all of our stakeholders;
Continual improvement and innovation;
To provide sustainable solutions to address our client’s needs and their business objectives;
Adaptability to economic and regulatory changes impacting our stakeholders;
Being approachable to our diverse Client base;
To deliver on our commitments on time and within budget.

USEFUL LINKS

Provided for Your Benefit

We’ve started a list of fact sheets and links that may be useful as you consider your environmental needs. Is there anything missing you’d recommend we add? Please do tell us, we’re always aiming to grow our list.