Headwaters

What Headwaters does

Headwaters, Inc. is a privately held natural resource management and environmental consulting firm headquartered in Madison, Mississippi, founded in 2004. The firm delivers professional environmental permitting, regulatory compliance, natural resource management, and land management services to major corporations, state and federal government agencies, and private landowners across the southeastern United States, with active project presence in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Texas, and Florida.

The company's service portfolio spans four practice areas. Environmental services include wetland delineation and permitting, wetland mitigation banking, threatened and endangered species surveys, Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (per ASTM E 1527-13), NEPA EA/EIS coordination, surface mining permit coordination, and coastal zone management across multiple Gulf and southeastern states. Regulatory compliance services cover construction storm water permitting, solid waste management, air permitting (including Title V and NSR), and pipeline and terminal integrity management. The firm also provides cultural resources surveys under Section 106 of the NHPA, and a land management practice that includes GIS and mapping (with LiDAR, GPS, AutoCAD, and certified UAS/drone pilots), forestry and wildlife management, fisheries management, conservation easements, and licensed real estate brokerage through an affiliated entity (Breamfly Real Estate, LLC). Headwaters supports named enterprise clients such as Toyota Motor Manufacturing Mississippi, Continental Tire, Yokohama Tire, Sasol (Mossville Yard Expansion), BNSF Railway, and Kansas City Southern Railway, alongside principal consulting roles for various state and federal agencies.

The firm operates on a project-based professional services model with quote-based pricing and no publicly disclosed revenue. It employs 30+ professionals across three offices (Madison, MS; Tupelo, MS; Prairieville, LA) and has pursued a consistent regional growth strategy via the 2022-2023 Baton Rouge expansion and a 2025 corporate relocation. Headwaters is founder/management-owned with no disclosed external funding, private equity, or parent company. Its competitive position rests on two decades of regulatory relationship-building, multi-disciplinary credentialed staff, and domain specialization as a premier natural resources consultancy in the southern US.

Name

Headwaters

Legal name

Headwaters, Inc.

Website

https://headwaters-inc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Headwaters, Inc. is a privately held Mississippi-based environmental and natural resources consulting firm providing wetland permitting, regulatory compliance, NEPA documentation, cultural resources, and land management services to major corporations, government agencies, and landowners across the southeastern United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Consulting Services

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Support Activities for Forestry (1153)

SIC

Forestry (800)

akta.pro primary industry

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Watershed Protection & Water Quality Services (AFAMAMAB), Riparian & Watershed Reforestation (Streambank Stabilization) (AFAMACAK)

Keywords

• Environmental consulting services
• Wetland delineation permitting
• Regulatory compliance consulting
• NEPA documentation services
• Natural resource management

Headquarters

HQ city

Ridgeland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Environmental Consulting Services: Professional consulting fees for environmental permitting, regulatory compliance, wetland delineation, and natural resource management services. Project-based engagements for corporations and government agencies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Headwaters, Inc. provides professional natural resource management and environmental consulting services to corporations and government agencies across the southern United States. Its core offerings span environmental permitting, wetland delineation and mitigation banking, NEPA documentation, regulatory compliance (storm water, solid waste, air, pipelines), cultural resources surveys, GIS mapping, forestry/wildlife/fisheries management, conservation easements, and real estate services. Services are delivered as project-based engagements by an in-house multidisciplinary staff of natural resource professionals.

Product overview

Headwaters, Inc. is a broad-based natural resource management and consulting firm that provides professional environmental and regulatory compliance services. The company offers a comprehensive suite of integrated service offerings organized into four main practice areas: Environmental Services (wetland delineation and permitting, mitigation banking, threatened and endangered species management, Phase I ESAs, NEPA documentation, surface mining coordination, and coastal zone management), Regulatory Compliance (construction storm water, solid waste, air permitting, and pipeline/terminal services), Cultural Resources (surveys and Section 106 NHPA coordination), and Land Management (GIS and mapping, forestry and wildlife management, fisheries management, conservation easements, land management, and real estate services). Rather than a software product or platform, Headwaters delivers consulting and technical services through its team of natural resource professionals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wetland Delineation and Permitting Professional wetland delineation and determination services across the southern United States, including Section 404 Wetland Permits, Nationwide Permits, and Section 401 Water Quality Certification coordination for development and infrastructure clients.
• Wetland Mitigation Planning and Bank Development Wetland mitigation plan development, wetland restoration and enhancement projects, and wetland mitigation bank development and approvals through the USACE process for clients across the southern United States.
• Threatened and Endangered Species Surveys and Management T&E species surveys, Habitat Conservation Plan development, and coordination with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and state wildlife agencies for development projects.
• Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (ESA) Phase I Environmental Site Assessments conducted per ASTM E 1527-13 standards to identify recognized environmental conditions for property transactions and corporate clients.
• NEPA EA and EIS Coordination and Documentation Environmental Assessment and Environmental Impact Statement preparation and coordination for Federal agency actions, including categorical exclusions and FONSI determinations.
• Surface Mining Permit Coordination Surface mining permit applications and reclamation plan development for state environmental agencies across the southern United States.
• Coastal Zone Management Permitting and Coordination Coastal zone permitting including Mississippi DMR, Louisiana DNR Coastal Use Permits, Texas GLO, and Florida DEP coordination.
• Construction Storm Water Permitting and Regulatory Compliance Construction Notice of Intent development, SWPPP, Hydrostatic Test Notice of Intent, and storm water monitoring for NPDES compliance for construction and development clients.
• Solid Waste Management Regulatory Compliance Solid waste management plans, permitting coordination for landfills, rubbish sites, composting sites, and transfer stations across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
• Air Permitting and Compliance Air quality permitting including New Source Review, Title V operating permits, and Synthetic Minor Operating Permits for industrial and energy clients.
• Pipeline and Terminal Services Pipeline environmental permitting, Integrity Management Plans, HSE oversight, DOT compliance, and GIS mapping for pipeline projects.
• Cultural Resources Surveys and Coordination Section 106 NHPA compliance, Phase I/II/III Cultural Resources Surveys, and coordination with State Historic Preservation Offices.
• Geographical Information System (GIS) and Mapping Services GIS and mapping services using industry-standard software, GPS technology, AutoCAD integration, and LiDAR data analysis for environmental assessments and natural resource projects.
• Forestry and Wildlife Management Timber management planning, timber marketing, timber inventories and appraisals, and wildlife management plans for private non-industrial landowners.
• Fisheries Management Fisheries assessment, lake and pond design, population assessments using electro-fishing equipment, aquatic weed control, and stocking recommendations for private and public clients.
• Conservation Easements Conservation easement assistance including Baseline Documentation Reports and guidance through the IRS donation process for tax deductions for private landowners.
• Land and Conservation Management Management of hunting and recreational properties for absentee landowners, estates, trusts, and corporate entities, including customized user agreements.
• Real Estate Services Real estate services provided through Breamfly Real Estate, LLC by Michael Goff, President and licensed Real Estate Broker in Mississippi.

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• GHD: Global engineering, architecture, and environmental consulting firm with a strong US Southeast presence and overlapping environmental, water, and natural resources service lines.
• Tetra Tech: Largest pure-play environmental and water consulting firm globally, providing the full suite of services Headwaters offers (wetlands, NEPA, permitting) but at much greater scale across all US geographies. Direct competitor on enterprise and government RFPs.
• TRC Companies: National environmental, permitting, and compliance consulting firm serving utility, transportation, and industrial clients. Overlaps significantly with Headwaters' regulatory compliance, NEPA, and pipeline/terminal services.
• ICF International: Large environmental and energy consulting firm with strong federal agency practice in NEPA, environmental assessment, and regulatory compliance — directly competing for the federal agency work Headwaters targets.
• AECOM: Global engineering and environmental services giant with extensive water, environmental, and permitting practices competing for the same large enterprise and government clients as Headwaters across the Southeast.
• Stantec: International engineering, environmental, and natural resources consulting firm with deep permitting, wetlands, and NEPA capabilities. Competes with Headwaters on water resources, infrastructure, and government projects in the Southeast.
• SCS Engineers: Environmental engineering and consulting firm specializing in solid waste, air permitting, water resources, and regulatory compliance — directly overlapping with Headwaters' solid waste, air, and pipeline compliance practice areas.

Direct peers

• SWCA Environmental Consultants: Mid-sized environmental consulting firm providing natural resource management, permitting, NEPA documentation, and biological surveys across the US. Closely comparable to Headwaters in service mix, customer type, and project-based professional services model.
• Anchor QEA: Environmental and water-resources consulting firm offering permitting, NEPA, wetland delineation, and regulatory compliance services to public and private clients. Highly comparable to Headwaters' environmental and water-resources practice areas.
• Resource Environmental Solutions (RES): Specialist in wetland mitigation, stream restoration, and ecological consulting with deep overlap on Headwaters' wetland mitigation banking and Section 404 permitting work. Direct competitor for mitigation bank projects in the Southeast.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/HeadwatersInc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/headwaters-inc-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles29 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Headwaters