Marnie Criley is a Partner and the Business Manager at Watershed Consulting. She has been with the company since 1998. Marnie is experienced in proposal and report writing, project management, and on-the-ground restoration work. In 2010, Marnie took over the business management roll, including contracting, budgeting, finances and day-to-day operations. She has more than 10 years of experience assisting organizations, community groups and collaboratives build the capacity to carry out long-term planning and implementation for forest and watershed based projects. These skills – from meeting facilitation and strategic planning to assessment and implementation – help Marnie in her many roles at Watershed Consulting.

Jeff Copeland is our Biological Weed Control Specialist. He has been with Watershed Consulting since 2011. Jeff has over 18 years’ experience managing noxious weeds with biological control insects in Montana and surrounding states, as well as a background in natural resource management and planning, including GPS/GIS mapping and design, as well as vegetation monitoring.   

Julian Colescott is Watershed Consulting’s Wetland Scientist, joining our team in 2015. Julian has over 17 years’ experience working in environmental consulting as a biologist, Professional Wetland Scientist (SWS No. 1920), and Project Manager. He specializes in preparing wetland delineations, wetland functional assessment, and wetland permit applications, but is well versed in survey methods for many different wildlife species. Survey data are incorporated into Biological Resources sections of National Environmental Policy Act documents.

Watershed Consulting Staff

Mark Vander Meer is Principal Partner at Watershed Consulting and has been with the company since 1998. He is our senior restoration ecologist with more than 30 years of experience in ecologic restoration and bio-physical assessments. Mark is a USDA certified soil scientist and an ISA Certified Arborist. He works to mend severe disturbances such as degraded riparian areas or abandoned mine sites. Mark has developed many innovative revegetation and soil stabilization techniques. He is the lead author for three regional revegetation manuals. He owns and operates a native plant nursery for the company’s many revegetation projects. In the woods, Mark applies responsible forest practices that restore and sustain long-term forest use and vitality. His work encourages woodland health and appropriate ecologic trends. Recognizing the importance of the soil resource, Mark works to assess how past disturbances influence natural bio-physical resiliency and ecological trends of the above- and below-ground ecosystems; he then provides recommendations for soil rehabilitation and native plant revegetation. Mark is continually learning and teaching restoration and forest management techniques throughout Western Montana.