1974 With environmental protection becoming a priority across Canada, fisheries biologist Chris Hatfield saw an opportunity to help organizations meet their environmental management and monitoring requirements. In February 1974, he opened Hatfield Consultants (Hatfield) in Deep Cove, British Columbia (BC).
1975 Chris Hatfield was selected to conduct fish and aquatic studies for an inquiry into the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline, a project designed to link natural gas developments in the Beaufort Sea to northern Alberta. These studies launched Hatfield into its first complex, multi-year environmental project – an area in which it now specializes.
1979 Due to increasing business opportunities, Hatfield expanded into a larger office in West Vancouver, British Columbia. More than four decades later, despite opening offices across western Canada and internationally, Hatfield’s headquarters remains on the North Shore.
1980 Success with oil and gas projects in the Canadian Arctic resulted in opportunities for developing offshore oil spill prevention plans in São Paulo State, Brazil. This project marked the beginning of Hatfield’s extensive portfolio of international work, which now spans more than 40 countries.
1983 Building on its expertise in fisheries and project experience in South America, Hatfield investigated opportunities related to the emerging salmon aquaculture sector in Chile. Hatfield formed a partnership with Puga Mujica Associados to design and operate a salmon farm in southern Chile. Hatfield has maintained a working relationship with Puga Mujica Associados to jointly pursue opportunities in South America.
1989 As a result of changing environmental regulations, pulp and paper mills in British Columbia contracted Hatfield to study the environmental effects of effluent discharges, specifically investigating the impacts of dioxin and other persistent organic pollutants. Hatfield remains widely recognized for its expertise in monitoring ultra-trace organics in aquatic environments around the world.
1990 Emerging opportunities in aquaculture, mining, and other resource-based sectors led to the creation of PT Hatfield Indonesia, based in Bogor, West Java. PT Hatfield Indonesia is now one of the most highly reputed environmental consulting companies in Indonesia, supporting Hatfield’s operations throughout Southeast Asia.
1994 Experience with dioxin and persistent organic pollutants in British Columbia led Hatfield to study Agent Orange contamination in Vietnam. This project helped catalyse clean-up efforts for areas contaminated by chemicals during the US-Viet Nam War and provided Hatfield with project experience in the rapidly developing Mekong region.
1995 The launch of Canada's Radarsat-1 satellite and our work with Agent Orange contamination in Viet Nam enabled Hatfield to pioneer new environmental applications of satellite imagery. These technological solutions led to the creation of Hatfield’s Geomatics Group, which now completes cutting-edge environmental monitoring and analytics for clients around the world. Photo Credit: RADARSAT-2 Image of Vancouver - Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
2000 Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters presented Hatfield with the Mark Drake Award in Recognition of Excellence in Communicating Private Sector Contributions to International Cooperation Issues. This award recognized our quality of work in addressing the lasting impacts of Agent Orange in Viet Nam. PT Hatfield Indonesia provided GIS and remote sensing services in an ecological restoration project for PT Freeport Indonesia, which began our role as a leader in this field for a broad range of sectors in Indonesia and Asia.
2003 Securing a large regional aquatics monitoring program prompted Hatfield to open a second Canadian office in Fort McMurray, Alberta. The program was designed to identify and address potential impacts to aquatic environments due to increased development of the Alberta oil sands. Hatfield is the leading environmental consultant in Fort McMurray and services clients throughout northern Alberta.
2007 The Canadian Awards for International Cooperation recognized Hatfield with the Nexen Award for Excellence in Corporate Social and Ethical Responsibility. This award acknowledged Hatfield’s contribution to international development.
2008 Hatfield received ISO9001 Quality Management Systems certification, which confirms our ability to consistently provide products and services that meet customer and applicable statutory and regulatory, as well as having processes for improvement of the system.
2009 The engineering team for the Sea-to-Sky Highway Improvement project received the 2009 Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Engineering Excellence. Hatfield served as the environmental manager for the project and provided quality assurance support for the upgrade to Highway 99, which connects the British Columbian communities of Whistler and West Vancouver.
2010 Hatfield opened our Hatfield Consultants Africa office in Gaborone, Botswana, which supports clients in the natural resources sector across Southern Africa, and is now recognized for its leadership in remote sensing and GIS services. To accommodate growth, Hatfield moved our head office into a new LEED Platinum building in North Vancouver.
2011 Building on our growing portfolio of work in Alberta, Hatfield opened an office in Calgary to better support clients throughout the province.
2012 Hatfield Consultants Mekong opened in Vientiane, Lao PDR, to focus on supporting clients in the hydropower, mining, and international development sectors throughout the Mekong region of Southeast Asia.
2013 PT Hatfield Indonesia received ISO9001 Quality Management Systems certification, demonstrating our culture of quality and client focus in our international operations.
2014 Coinciding with our 40th anniversary, Hatfield was recognized as one of Canada’s Top Small and Medium Employers along with the BC’s Top Employer Award from Canada’s nationally recognized Top 100 Employers program. Hatfield was also awarded the Environmental Communications Award by the American Academy of Environmental Engineering and Scientists, based on our work with USAID and CDM Smith for environmental remediation at the Da Nang Airport in Viet Nam.
2015 Hatfield opened an office in Fort St. John to support a growing portfolio of clients in Northeast BC working in the energy, mining, and infrastructure sectors.
2016 Hatfield established a Human Environment Group (HEG), with specialists in social and economic assessments, community engagement, indigenous engagement, and capacity development.
2017 To accommodate growth, Hatfield’s Fort McMurray office moved into a new and larger office. Hatfield Consultants Africa was awarded an ENGAGE Award by Maxar for demonstrating exceptional value delivery to customers throughout Southern Africa.
2018 Hatfield introduced the first edition of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report. CSR has been an integral part of Hatfield culture since the inception of the company in 1974, promoting environmental and social sustainability at the core of all the business services we offer.
2019 Hatfield opened two new office locations in British Columbia. Our New Westminster office serves Hatfield’s expanding client base in BC’s Fraser Valley and beyond and supports current and future Hatfield employees living in the eastern and southern suburbs of Metro Vancouver. Our Terrace office supports mining, industry, and infrastructure clients in Northwest BC.
2020 Hatfield wins the 2020 Business of Good Award in the Workplace Wellness category, awarded by BC Business. This award recognizes organizations that are committed to promoting the health and wellness of employees. In addition, Hatfield welcomed three new Associate Partners to the partnership, a new President Director at PT Hatfield Indonesia, as well as a new Managing Director at Hatfield Consultants Africa. Hatfield also launched GEO Analytics Canada, a cloud native, open platform for big data geoscience.
2021 Hatfield welcomed five new Associate Partners in 2021, continuing to grow the company and build an exceptional leadership group.
2022 Hatfield wins Top 100 Employers 2022 and Canada’s Top Small and Medium Employers 2022, awards that recognize organizations that lead in creating exceptional places to work, incorporating progressive human resources policies, best practices, and innovative corporate initiatives to care for employees and the communities in which we operate. This year, it was with great sadness that we announced our friend, founder, and namesake, Chris Hatfield, passed away following a lengthy illness – In memory of Chris Hatfield, 1945-2022.
2023 This year we celebrated 20 years in Fort McMurray providing support to the municipality, local industry, and surrounding communities in Alberta. In addition, we welcomed three new associate partners to our leadership team. We also were thrilled to introduce a new Leader of People and Culture role in our leadership team to build our culture of scientific excellence, professional development, inclusion and diversity, and down-to-earth management practices, with the goal of being a workplace that attracts and retains great people. 
2024 It is with great pride that Hatfield celebrates 50 years of serving our clients and community. Since our modest beginnings in 1974, Hatfield has grown into one of the largest independent environmental consultancies in western Canada. Our continuing success is a testament to our amazing clients, our employees, both past and present, and our community. This year we are also thrilled to have been selected as one of BC's Top Employer 2024.