RPC Welcomes Meredith Houghton, Planning Technician
2018-05-22
Meredith Houghton joined RPC this May as a temporary Planning Technician for the transportation and water resources programs. As such, she will be primarily supporting the implementation of both the Road Surface Management System (RSMS) and Regional Stream Crossing Assessment (RSCA) projects, which contribute to the New Hampshire Statewide Asset Data Exchange System (SADES).
This summer, RPC’s RSMS program will be focused on the towns of Epping and Fremont. The RSMS program provides state agencies and the participating municipalities with information on the road system’s condition and estimates for future maintenance costs. The main objective of this effort is to identify distressed pavement manifestations, such as cracking or rutting, so that municipalities can better prioritize maintenance projects to maximize their return on investment and road quality. Meredith will be assisting the field team with road assessments and data collection, which will provide information pertinent to the planning and budget preparation for the participating towns’ long-term maintenance programs.
In addition to the RSMS program, Meredith will also be supporting the RSCA project, building on five years of prior data collection efforts by RPC within the region. The program is a statewide initiative that is a collaboration of multiple partners, including the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) and Transportation (NHDOT), Fish and Game Department and the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEM). The RSCA program aims to evaluate stream crossings to address flood risks and identify problem culverts which may present a hazard to public safety and/or may hinder passage to wildlife. As part of the field team, Meredith will be collecting georeferenced data to locate and assess existing crossings. This data will allow for the prioritization of stream crossing replacement projects within a town, watershed or region. This season, RPC will be performing these assessments primarily within the western areas of the RPC region.
Meredith brings prior experience in environmental remediation and compliance/permitting to RPC, and is currently pursuing her graduate degree in Urban and Environmental Planning at Tufts University. Her most recent professional work has focused on stormwater compliance projects, as well as an invasive aquatic species management contract within a drinking water reservoir in Massachusetts. As an aspiring Environmental Planner, Meredith is excited to build on her knowledge of water resource management and broaden her perspective in transportation planning at RPC.Additional information on the RSMS and RSCA programs is available on the SADES and NHDES webpages.
