Environmental Compliance & Species Surveys | Arrants Outdoors

Ecological & Environmental Consulting Services

Arrants Outdoors, LLC provides full-spectrum ecological and environmental consulting for industry, public lands, and private landowners. Founded and led by Josh Arrants, a naturalist with more than twenty-five years of experience studying ecosystems from coast to coast, the firm pairs rigorous, defensible field science with a practical understanding of what corporate and agency clients need to keep projects moving. Beyond fieldwork, Josh regularly lectures at colleges and universities, leads nature walks, and teaches natural history classes for government agencies and NGOs across the country.

Award-Winning Conservation Leadership

Arrants Outdoors' work has earned recognition at the highest levels. Josh Arrants received the 2024 Lindsay Pettus Conservation Award from the Katawba Valley Land Trust, and Arrants Outdoors was named 2025 Green Business of the Year by the Environmental Education Association of South Carolina. These honors reflect a career dedicated to protecting and conserving natural resources, and to outstanding contributions in environmental education.

Threatened & Endangered Species Surveys

Arrants Outdoors specializes in baseline ecological assessments and surveys for threatened and endangered (T&E) species, alongside biodiversity inventories and bioacoustics monitoring on properties of every size. From birds to bats, fish to frogs, turtles to trees, and wildflowers to water quality, the firm has delivered projects spanning the full breadth of ecology and environmental management across the United States.

Arrants Outdoors brings deep, hands-on expertise with some of North America’s most sensitive species. Josh Arrants has worked in the recovery of the endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker throughout a career spanning more than 25 years, as well as extensive experience monitoring sensitive bat species - most notably Rafinesque's Big-eared Bat and Tricolored Bat, as well as the federally protected Northern Long-eared Bat. The Arrants Outdoors T&E portfolio also includes population monitoring for Pine Barrens Treefrog and Spotted Turtle, and surveys for rare plant species including Rough-leaved Loosestrife, Smooth Coneflower, Michaux's Sumac, and Schweinitz's Sunflower. This breadth allows Arrants Outdoors to anticipate species-specific regulatory triggers and design surveys that stand upto agency review.

Bioacoustic Monitoring for Bat Populations

Arrants Outdoors offers specialized acoustic bat monitoring using bioacoustics survey methods to detect, identify, and assess bat activity and habitat use. Passive and active acoustic surveys support presence/probable-absence determinations, pre-construction risk assessment, and long-term population monitoring; critical tools for clients navigating Endangered Species Act (ESA) obligations tied to species such as the Northern Long-eared Bat and Tricolored Bat. These data help clients make informed siting and timing decisions, while documenting compliance for federal and state regulators.

Regulatory Compliance & Environmental Permitting

Arrants Outdoors regularly guides clients through both federal and state environmental permitting and regulatory compliance. The firm works alongside agencies including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (SCDES), and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ)—translating complex regulatory requirements into clear, actionable compliance strategies.

SCDES-Certified Laboratory

Arrants Outdoors owns and operates a laboratory certified through SCDES's Laboratory Certification (Lab Cert) division. The lab establishes and conducts studies and population surveys covering freshwater, saltwater, and estuarine macroinvertebrate, shellfish, and fish sampling and taxonomy, providing clients with certified, agency-ready data for biological and water quality assessments.

Experience on Complex Industrial Sites

Having partnered with global manufacturers such as BMW Manufacturing and international mining companies including OceanaGold (Haile Gold Mine), Arrants Outdoors is well-versed in the demands of complex, high-security, and safety-critical sites. Josh Arrants is MSHA Part 48 and HAZWOPER certified, and is a fully trained and certified wildland firefighter. The firm brings extensive experience directing and supervising site remediations, drinking water programs, and air quality programs across multiple states. And always in close adherence to site-specific safety protocols.

A Trusted Partner for Projects of Every Scale

Simply put, Arrants Outdoors, LLC delivers a diverse array of consulting services tailored to each client's needs—no matter the size or complexity of the project.

About Josh Arrants

As a naturalist, Josh has worked in the recovery of the endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker, managed birds of prey, and operated MAPS (Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) stations, with much of his fieldwork conducted on two large military installations in South Carolina. He has served as an instructor for the South Carolina Wildlife Federation's (SCWF) Palmetto Pro Birder and Master Naturalist programs and is a former SCWF Board Member. Josh is also a certified Master Naturalist in the state of Montana, an instructor for the Glacier Institute across a range of natural history classes, and is a former board member and past president of the GI Board of Directors. He has also served as a guest Master Naturalist instructor in Texas. A Magna Cum Laude graduate of both Central Carolina Technical College, where he also served as adjunct faculty in the Natural Resources Management Department; and the University of South Carolina. Josh holds degrees in Natural Resources Management and Anthropology.

Josh has been fortunate enough to study birds and natural history from California to Virginia and along the gulf coast in Texas, Alabama, and Florida. From saving sea turtle nests on the beaches of Bon Secour NWR following the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill to conducting snake research at Carolina Sandhills NWR, his natural history experience is varied and is not simply limited to ornithology. Sure, he has chased Yellow Warblers beside Niagara Falls and watched as a Golden Eagles soared across a Montana sky, but Josh has also sat with US lawmakers and discussed the need to fund conservation projects that would open up public recreation possibilities and set aside land for the protection of T&E species. As an anthropologist, he has also spent his fair share of time digging for artifacts on archeological digs throughout the Southeast.

If there is one thing about Josh’s Alma Mater, the University of South Carolina, that Arrants Outdoors takes pride in, it is the Carolinian Creed.  As stated by the university, it "emphasizes openness and the general principles of civility." The principles of the creed are the defining differences between a Carolinian and just a Gamecock fan. They separate someone who attended the university and took the values of the USC motto, "Emolit mores nec sinit esse feros" (Learning humanizes character and does not permit it to be cruel), to heart from someone that simply puts on a Gamecock hat and goes to a sporting event. The two portions of the Carolinian Creed we like to spotlight are:

1. I will respect the dignity of all persons.

2. I will discourage bigotry, while striving to learn from differences in people, ideas, and opinions.

With that in mind, we proudly state that Arrants Outdoors, LLC does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, color, age, national origin, or sexual orientation.