Northwater Consulting International

What Northwater Consulting International does

Northwater Consulting International is a US-based environmental and geosciences consulting firm founded in 2010 that specializes in serving the water sector. The firm organizes its work around six core practice areas — Water Resources, Water Supply, Environmental Services, Geosciences & Engineering, International Development, and Geophysics — delivering project-based professional services to government agencies (municipalities, regional planning bodies, federal clients), international development organizations (Inter-American Development Bank, BRGM), NGOs (Charity: Water, Alliance for the Great Lakes, American Farmland Trust), and private-sector enterprises (AECOM, Marriott Hotel Port-au-Prince).

The firm operates from offices in Illinois, North Carolina, Michigan, and Arizona, with international operations in Haiti and Nicaragua supporting Latin America and the Caribbean, and has executed project work as far as the Congo. Its technical platform combines deep hydrogeology, geological engineering, and applied geophysics — including what it describes as the most advanced geophysics equipment inventory in the Caribbean and Central America — with proprietary digital tools under its Technology + Ideas line: SWAMM, interactive Data and Mapping Portals, and Interactive Reports.

Northwater's revenue model is project-based professional services, with engagement fees determined by scope and complexity. The firm uses a sales-led go-to-market built on direct engagement, proposals, and relationship-based business development. In 2025, Northwater was acquired by Spheros Environmental, a science-forward environmental consulting firm, with the Northwater website being retired and operations consolidated under spherosenv.com.

Name

Northwater Consulting International

Legal name

Northwater Consulting International

Website

https://northwaterco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Acquired

Short description

Northwater Consulting International is a US-based environmental and geosciences consulting firm specializing in the water sector, serving government agencies, NGOs, international development organizations, and private enterprises across the US, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Consulting Services

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (54136), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water, Wastewater & Stormwater Compliance (BPAHAJAJ), Water & Wastewater Compliance (NPDES/Stormwater, Pretreatment, Drinking Water/SDWA) (EUAHABAB), Mineral Exploration & Geoscience Services (Geology, Geophysics, Geochemistry, Resource Modeling) (IMAKAKAA), Civil & Structural Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAA)

Keywords

• Environmental consulting services
• Water resources consulting
• Hydrogeology services
• Geosciences consulting
• International development consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Springfield

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 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: Project-based professional consulting services for water resources, water supply, environmental assessment, geosciences, and geophysics. Revenue is generated through consulting engagements, studies, assessments, and technical services contracted by government agencies, NGOs, and private sector clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Northwater Consulting International provides environmental, water resources, and geosciences consulting and research services to government, NGO, and private-sector clients. Its practice spans water resources planning, water supply development, environmental due diligence and permitting, geosciences and engineering, geophysics for groundwater and mineral exploration, and international development project support across the US, Caribbean, and Central America. The firm complements its consulting services with proprietary technology tools (SWAMM, Data and Mapping Portals, Interactive Reports) used to visualize and report on water and environmental data.

Product overview

Northwater Consulting International is an environmental and geosciences consulting firm founded in 2010, specializing in the water sector. The company offers a unified suite of consulting services organized around six core practice areas: Water Resources, Water Supply, Environmental Services, Geosciences & Engineering, International Development, and Geophysics. Additionally, the firm provides three technology-enabled tools under its Technology + Ideas initiative: SWAMM, Data and Mapping Portals, and Interactive Reports. The company has recently become part of Spheros Environmental, combining its expertise with broader environmental consulting resources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Resources Services

Quantifiable outcome

• $10M USDA grant successfully awarded to City of Decatur for water quality improvements

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Tetra Tech: Global consulting and engineering firm with a leading water resources, environmental, and geosciences practice — directly comparable services to Northwater's water supply, environmental, and geoscience offerings, but at vastly greater scale.
• AECOM: Largest global infrastructure consulting firm with extensive water and environmental practices; AECOM is also a named Northwater client, illustrating direct overlap in service scope and target clients.
• Arcadis: International design and consultancy firm with major water and environment practices that compete for the same municipal and development-bank RFPs as Northwater.
• Burns & McDonnell: Engineering, architecture, and consulting firm with significant water resources and environmental practices; competes for the same municipal water supply and planning RFPs as Northwater.
• WSP: Global professional services consultancy with deep water, environment, and earth sciences capabilities; comparable to Northwater's geoscience and environmental service lines and active in similar Latin American/Caribbean and US markets.
• ERM (Environmental Resources Management): Pure-play environmental, health, safety, and sustainability consultancy with comparable permitting, impact assessment, and water resource services to Northwater's Environmental practice.

Direct peers

• Apex Companies: Mid-sized environmental and water resources consultancy with similar municipal and industrial client base, comparable service menu in water, environmental due diligence, and permitting.
• Haley & Aldrich: Employee-owned environmental and geotechnical consulting firm closely matching Northwater's geosciences, hydrogeology, and environmental site assessment offerings, particularly for US municipal and private clients.
• Montrose Environmental: Environmental services company with strong water resources, geophysics/subsurface, and ESG advisory practices — directly comparable in niche technical services to Northwater's offerings.
• SLR Consulting: Global environmental and advisory consultancy with water resources, geoscience, and international development practices highly comparable in scope and client mix to Northwater.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Northwater Consulting International