Dr. Joseph M. Debebe is the founder and principal consultant of JMD Environmental Consulting LLC, bringing over 30 years of combined federal and private sector experience in environmental science, natural resource management, and regulatory compliance. His career spans service with two of the nation’s most influential federal land management agencies — the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) — giving clients direct access to a consultant who has worked inside the agencies that regulate their projects.

Over the course of his federal career, Dr. Debebe conducted hundreds of environmental assessments, wetland delineations, and natural resource evaluations across multiple states including Nebraska, Iowa, Wyoming, and Colorado. He has managed natural resource projects ranging from routine field assessments to large-scale, multi-million dollar programs, providing leadership in quality assurance, problem solving, contracting, and interdisciplinary team coordination.

Dr. Debebe’s regulatory experience is exceptionally broad. As a NEPA Specialist with NRCS, he led environmental review processes for watershed planning and rehabilitation programs, prepared Environmental Assessments, Environmental Impact Statements, and Categorical Exclusions, and ensured compliance with federal environmental law across state and nationwide programs. As a State Compliance Soil Scientist and Wetland Biologist, he conducted certified wetland determinations, supported Swampbuster compliance under the Food Security Act, and provided technical guidance to field staff, landowners, and agency partners across multiple states.

During his tenure with the Bureau of Land Management at the Pinedale Field Office in Wyoming, Dr. Debebe served as a Natural Resources Specialist and Physical Scientist, managing oil and gas surface compliance, reclamation monitoring, and interdisciplinary resource management. He processed Applications for Permit to Drill (APDs), Plans of Development (PODs), and Environmental Impact Statements for fluid mineral operations, and led best management practices workshops to advance reclamation success in energy development areas. He also conducted taxonomic identification and management of threatened, endangered, and special status plant species, and managed areas of critical concern, including wetlands, riparian areas, and wilderness study areas.

Dr. Debebe holds a Ph.D. in Agronomy from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a Master of Science in Tropical and Subtropical Agriculture from Plovdiv Agricultural Institute in Bulgaria, and a Bachelor of Science in Plant Sciences from Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia. He is fluent in English, Amharic, and Bulgarian, with functional proficiency in Russian and additional Slavic languages — a reflection of his truly international academic and professional background.

Today, through JMD Environmental Consulting LLC, Dr. Debebe brings this extraordinary depth of federal regulatory knowledge, scientific expertise, and field experience to serve federal, state, and private clients across the United States.

Credentials and Certifications

• CPA-52 Certified — 11 modules completed (2023)
• Wetland Functional Assessment Certified (January 2024)
• Applying the NEPA Process and Writing Effective Documents (February 2024)
• Advanced Wetland Course, CNTSC (2020)
• Wetland Identification for Food Security Act Purposes — Phases 1, 2 & 3
• Hydrology for Wetland Identification, FSA Purposes (2022)
• BLM Certificates: IPM & Pesticide Application, NEPA Analysis, GIS (2014)
• ICS-100, ICS-200, NIMS IS-700 (Incident Command & Emergency Management)
• Seed Germination and Purity Analysis — Iowa State University (2007)

Core Areas of Expertise

• NEPA compliance and environmental documentation
• Wetland delineation and jurisdictional determinations
• LiDAR terrain analysis and geospatial interpretation
• Soil science, hydrology, and ecological site assessment
• Agronomic consulting and sustainable land management
• Oil and gas surface management and reclamation
• Endangered and special status species assessment
• Watershed planning and rehabilitation