At Farallon, the health and safety of our colleagues, their families, and our clients are top of mind amid concerns about the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). In our continued response to COVID-19, we want to update you with how Farallon continues to operate and provide project and business continuity. Our workforce is fully committed to working remotely from their homes, and our technology for file access, teleconferencing, and other electronic communications is working seamlessly to support this. Our three western states each have their own rules and restrictions for work outside our homes. We are working to comply with the rules to safely continue doing project fieldwork with our clients as follows:
- Washington: Farallon has been qualified as an “essential business” relative to Governor Inslee’s Stay at Home, Stay Healthy order (Proclamation 20-25), allowing us to continue with fieldwork by including social distancing and other safety protocols.
- Oregon: Governor Brown’s Stay Home, Save Lives order (Executive Order No. 20-12) allows Farallon to continue doing fieldwork by assuring that social distancing field officers are designated for each field project.
- California: Governor Newsom’s Shelter-in-Place order (Executive Order N-33-20) requires Farallon to consider each project separately to confirm fieldwork complies with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s essential critical infrastructure list (https://www.cisa.gov/identifying-critical-infrastructure-during-covid-19). We have set up an efficient approval process that allows this to occur quickly for project planning and appropriate health and safety measures.
Because financial institutions are considered an essential business service under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security list of essential businesses, many lenders are continuing to process loan applications that require environmental due diligence. Environmental professionals provide support for this essential business service, as required under Part 312 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR 312), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s All Appropriate Inquiry.
We remain committed to supporting our clients during this challenging time. If you have any questions, please reach out to your Farallon contact.
Be well and stay healthy.
Amy
