Who is Ecolotree? • What Can You Expect From Ecolotree? • Publications • Key Staff

Who is Ecolotree?

Ecolotree®, Inc. is an Iowa-based engineering company that designs, installs, and maintains engineered forests at regulatory-permitted sites, such as landfills and chemical spill sites. This rapidly expanding technology is called "phytoremediation."

Ecolotree is the oldest and most experienced phytoremediation company in America, with over 60 sites installed across the United States and one in Europe. Planted locations include landfills, contaminated soil and groundwater sites, municipal and industrial wastewater treatment sites, brownfield sites, agrochemical spill areas, riparian stream filters, and animal feed lot perimeters. Clients include large landfill companies, national consultants, the Navy, NASA, and Fortune 100 companies.

What can you expect from Ecolotree?

With Ecolotree you can expect professional work, people of integrity, innovative solutions, and a passion for providing our clients with excellent service.  These traits have resulted in several of our projects winning state and national awards:

  • 1994 Engineering Excellence Honor Award from the American Consulting Engineers Council (for landfill leachate management)
  • 1994 Engineering Excellence Grand Award from the Consulting Engineers Council of Oregon (for municipal wastewater management)
  • 2000 Eminent Conceptor Award from the Iowa Consulting Engineers Council (for landfill leachate treatment)
  • 2002 Wisconsin Association of Consulting Engineers Engineering Excellence Honor Award (for brownfield site cleanup)
  • The 2002 National Recognition Crystal Award from the ACEC Engineering Excellence Award Committee (for brownfield site cleanup)

Publications

Key Staff
Louis Licht

Louis Licht is founder and president of Ecolotree®, Inc. Since 1990, Ecolotree has designed and installed phytoremediation systems at over 55 sites in America and one in Europe. These plant systems use trees (principally Populus spp.) that grow a usable crop while managing water and regulated pollutants. Many projects have been directly connected to ongoing university research, providing a demonstration field site to verify phytoremediation concepts. Projects have been planted in 22 states as alternatives for prescribed landfill covers, for treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater pollutants, as perimeter buffers around hazardous chemical spills, and as interim or final closure for polluted industrial sites.

Dr. Licht is a licensed engineer and serves as an adjunct professor at The University of Iowa, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He has funded research and serves on Ph.D. and M.S. thesis committees. Past research at The University of Iowa has included water pollutant control by tree buffers, non-point pollution control, solid waste cycling, industrial wastewater management, and landfill water management using plant systems in buffers and caps.

Dr. Licht owns and manages Ecolofarm®, a state registered nursery (Iowa certification #197). This 200-acre farm is also home to native prairie, an oak savannah, native wetlands, and abundant wildlife.
Eric Aitchison

Eric Aitchison is the Vice President of Engineering for Ecolotree. Since 1998, Eric has served as an environmental engineer and project manager for over 25 phytoremediation projects across the United States. The projects have utilized the Ecolotree® Cap and Ecolotree® Buffer phytoremediation technologies. These plant systems (principally hybrid poplar trees) have been used as alternative landfill covers, for treatment of municipal and industrial wastewater pollutants, as perimeter buffers around hazardous chemical spill sites, and as interim or final closure for polluted industrial sites.

Eric's experience with Ecolotree covers all aspects of project management, including contracting, cost estimation, regulatory approval, design, modeling, site preparation, site installation, maintenance, and reporting. Eric is also involved with office management, financial matters, and intellectual property licensing. He has been an active member of the Interstate Technology Regulatory Council (ITRC) Alternative Landfill Technologies Team.

A licensed engineer, Eric has additional experience with Shive-Hattery, Inc. (Iowa City, IA), and as a researcher with The University of Iowa. His university research evaluated the use of hybrid poplar trees to remediate the solvent 1,4-dioxane.

Matt
Wilshusen

Matt Wilshusen is a certified agronomist and serves as Vice President of Agronomy and project manager for Ecolotree. Matt manages all agronomy-related issues, including soil and amendment testing/interpretation, fertilization plans, plant health, and pest management.  Matt manages Ecolofarm®, a 200-acre registered nursery that provides trees for phytoremediation projects and land owners.

Matt’s work experience includes Precision Agriculture Coordinator for River Valley Cooperative (Stanwood, IA) and Crop Production Specialist for the Clarence Cooperative Company (Clarence, IA).  He has been a Certified Crop Advisor since 1998.

JJJ Enterprises, Inc.

JJJ Enterprises, Inc. (Lowden, Iowa) is a multi-faceted construction company and specialty phytoremediation contractor that has worked closely with Ecolotree since 1998. JJJ has provided earth moving, excavation, trenching, augering, equipment modification, hauling, and labor support for over 20 phytoremediation projects across the United States. JJJ has certification for confined space entry, and can provide up to five operators with OSHA Hazardous Waste Site Worker certification.
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