A construction site in a desert setting shows a large yellow crane lifting a concrete building module onto a flatbed truck, with workers in safety vests and helmets guiding the process.

Telecommunications Infrastructure

Telecommunications infrastructure spans a wide range of project types, from macro cell towers to fiber optic and coaxial cable lines, both aerial and buried.

A technician working on a large telecommunications tower during daytime, with clear sky and distant mountains, wearing safety gear and climbing the metal structure.
A technician working on a large telecommunications tower during daytime, with clear sky and distant mountains, wearing safety gear and climbing the metal structure.

Unlike most private development, many telecommunications projects trigger federal environmental review even when sited on private or state land.

Because the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licenses wireless facilities and administers the Antenna Structure Registration (ASR) program, new towers and modifications can be treated as a federal action subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), regardless of the underlying property ownership.

Because towers and antenna structures are also attractive nesting and perching substrate for ravens, raptors, and other native birds, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and, where applicable, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, can factor into siting and construction timing decisions, particularly in the open desert, where a tower may represent the only elevated structure for miles.

Two large construction vehicles working on a dry, desert-like hillside, with power lines and electrical towers in the background.

Buried fiber and overhead cable installations raise similar considerations to other linear utility projects, since work within a narrow, permitted corridor (Right-of-Way; ROW) can intersect sensitive biological resources such as active bird nests and desert tortoise burrows, Joshua trees, and other protected species.

Qualified biological consultants and other resource specialists support telecommunications clients through initial pre-construction biological surveys, and construction monitoring, helping projects move from site selection to activation without unexpected delays.

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