Two Guys, a Gal, and an Old Ford Pickup Truck – Aurora Land Consulting

If you know Shane Nordin, co-owner and principle at Aurora Land Consulting you’d know the first part of the title of this article was his idea because that is just how he is,  down to earth.  He believes in going above and beyond for clients, treating his employees well and supporting small and local businesses,  which is why in 2017, when I told him of my upcoming “temporary loss of employment” , he said we should talk,  and I listened.

What followed were a few meetings between Shane, Sean Fuller former Vice President at  Vertex and I.  Which might not be seen as unusual as our sons are all the same age and played hockey together led by Coach Sean.  What was a bit different is that we were discussing this idea of creating an Environmental division of Aurora Land, a company that had seen steady growth over the past few decades, even in challenging times.  We talked about how we could do things differently, offer more efficient service to our clients with  the full cradle to grave service from project planning to closure and abandonments.

While we thought about potential problems,  “Could I go back consulting after 15 years behind a desk at an Oil and Gas Company?”  “Would anyone want to hire me?”    Could Sean jump in his truck and do a Phase II after 20 years out of the field?    But Shane was all in, and  so far, his bet was right.

Actually, consulting is rewarding when you’ve got an understanding of what makes a good consultant.  I know how I want to treat customers and execute work and can sometimes add value just by understanding the challenges they are facing within their organizations,  (ah yes, year-end accruals and the importance of invoicing on time).   Sean is doing great in the field and customers appreciate his ability to understand what needs to be done and to do it safely.

Since starting in 2017, we’ve added two full time employees who are willing to work incredibly hard to help continue to build the company and our reputation.  Anhua Wei has a PhD in Wetland Ecology and is our resident GIS expert who is helping the regulators, Professional organizations and our clients navigate the Water Act and Wetland Policy Implementation in Alberta.

Manuel Oppel is a Professional Engineer with expertise in surface casing vent flow and gas migration testing who is currently on the road helping the Orphan Well Fund get a handle on their newly received inventory.   Not really glamorous stuff but becoming an increasingly important job in our Province.

So, almost two years in, I’m doing a lot of Phase I’s which are actually pretty full circle as I’m able to efficiently help our clients start the road to a reclamation certificate with a massive number of inactive wells,  so I feel like I’m able to use my background to accurately asses the “likelihood of contamination” even for sites where I conducted the original Pre-Disturbance Site Assessment.  Sean has developed into an (accidental) expert in helping clients set up hydrovac waste storage and transfer sites around major urban centers. We are able to bundle work for our clients to increase efficiency and drive cost savings.  And we are still here and working.

And of course, so is the Ford.

For more information, visit our website at http://auroraland.ca/

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