Great Lakes Environmental Center, Inc. (GLEC) is an established national contracting firm offering applied environmental sciences, research, and compliance assistance focused on water quality and the protection of aquatic ecosystems. GLEC has grown steadily in each year of its existence, delivering services and solutions to government and commercial clients throughout North America. The dedicated employee-owners at GLEC often set the standard in their respective fields by consistently applying our core philosophies of scientific excellence, corporate responsibility, environmental stewardship, and dedication to fulfilling client needs. Our unique experience serving both regulatory agencies and the regulated community translates into viable, insightful, and creative solutions to complex environmental challenges.
GLEC has diverse capabilities focused on technical assistance, environmental problem solving and compliance assistance in the areas of aquatic and sediment toxicology; environmental surveys and assessments; ecological risk assessments; non-point source pollution evaluations; environmental chemistry; water quality and bioaccumulation and bioconcentration modeling.
GLEC is currently an approved vendor for the State of Arizona related to Water Quality Sampling and Monitoring since 2021, Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) and Watershed Modeling since 2023, and Surface Water Quality Standards and Technical support beginning in 2026. GLEC has previously assisted Arizona DEQ with stream chemistry (2021-2026), lake chemistry (2021-2026), SEM/NRSA (2023/24), and fish tissue sampling (2025/26). Additionally, in 2022, GLEC assisted ADEQ with the development of a Quality Management Plan for Flow Regime Determinations on Arizona waterbodies. GLEC also successfully assisted AZDEQ with complex Data Analysis and Modeling Scenarios for metal impairments in the Upper Queen Creek watershed and associated tributaries in central Arizona, followed by preparation of a complete TMDL report.
GLEC’s contracts with AZ Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) support water quality monitoring and assessment and have assisted the Arizona DEQ with lake and stream water quality monitoring assistance with US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) national rivers and streams assessment in Arizona and with the collection of water and fish tissue samples for the analysis of PFAS analytes and mercury in Arizona streams and lakes.
GLEC’s successes with Arizona DEQ represent the on-going national expansion of GLEC’s capabilities and services. GLEC is more than a Michigan firm, we continually support water quality related projects throughout the United States including the Arid West. GLEC has demonstrated that we can successfully apply our Midwestern Great Lakes knowledge to other important ecoregions throughout the United States. With these opportunities to work with the Arizona DEQ, GLEC is looking forward to sharing continued working relationships with state and local water quality regulators with the goal of continuous improvement of the environment. GLEC is very proud and enthusiastic about these endeavors.
Water Quality Sampling and Monitoring
Under the GLEC Water Quality and Sampling Contract, GLEC was responsible for the 2022 and 2023 annual water quality sampling and monitoring for the ADEQ Stream Chemistry and Lake Chemistry program. GLEC field crews successfully sampled 42 stream and 23 lake sites during each of three quarters of the FY2022/23 sampling seasons. Duties include sampling of back-country stream and lake sites and working with the ADEQ analytical laboratory for the delivery and analysis of water samples, and upload of water quality data to the State WQX database. GLEC crews also performed surveys of river and stream sites for the 2023 EPA National River and Streams Assessment for the ADEQ.
GLEC provided field crews to collect water samples and Arizona DEQ Stream Ecological Monitoring (SEM) protocol measurements, and to sample physical habitat and fish assemblage from Arizona rivers and streams, as part of the 2023/2024 Arizona/USEPA National Rivers and Streams Assessment (NRSA) surveys. During these surveys GLEC was responsible for assessing site suitability using selection protocols and Site Evaluation Guidelines (SEG), sampling of sites according to the Field Operations Manual (FOM) and organizing and tracking field crews to ensure that all sampling events were completed according to AZDEQ’s time requirements. GLEC field crews completed AZDEQ SEM training prior to the field sampling. SEM protocols were implemented alongside EPA NRSA protocols in separate stream reaches. Sampling deliverables were uploaded to the Arizona DEQ Google drive. Lake Chemistry samples were delivered to the AZDEQ contract analytical laboratory and the resultant results were uploaded to the WQX.
Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)
GLEC TMDL support contract assists the Arizona DEQ regulators with the implementation of TMDL requirements within specific Arizona watersheds. TMDL’s are a regulatory tool that outlines an approach to identify and allocate pollution sources with an impaired water body and watersheds to protect aquatic life when point source water quality criteria and standards are exceeded. GLEC water quality modelers summarize existing water quality and land use data for specific watersheds and develop sophisticated allocation and distribution models that assist with ongoing and planned mitigation that control pollution sources and work to remove water bodies from state compared water body lists. TMDL plans also identify gaps or inconsistencies in databases that direct future monitoring efforts and assessment efforts.
Under the TMDL and Watershed Modeling and Application contract, GLEC scientists prepare Data Analysis and Modeling Scenarios for metal impairments in Arizona watersheds and associated tributaries, followed by preparation of a complete TMDL report. TMDLs address water quality impairments across reaches within the watershed that form the basis of the TMDL Report. The Modeling Scenario developed load reductions, load allocations, portrayal of sources, and scenarios for implementation planning.
GLEC reviewed and analyzed data associated with these impairments, developed and applied modeling approaches, established appropriate pollutant reduction targets, and prepared a TMDL report in accordance with Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) guidelines. TMDLs are an essential tool in ensuring the protection and restoration of Arizona's surface waters.
Arizona Surface Water Quality Standards Development and Technical Support
GLEC was recently awarded and are an approved vendor for the State of Arizona related to Surface Water Quality Standards and Technical Support beginning in 2026. We are particularly excited about this opportunity because it provides a contractual vehicle for GLEC to share our extensive USEPA experience in the development of surface water quality and criteria with the Arizona DEQ. Since 1997, GLEC has supported the EPA Office of Water with its core mission under the Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 304(a)(l) to perform risk-based analyses and publish water quality criteria recommendations that accurately reflect the latest scientific knowledge about the effects on health and welfare from the presence of pollutants in surface water and groundwater. GLEC stands ready to support the Arizona DEQ with similar services including:
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