About AQC
Founded in 1984, AQC Environmental Brokerage Services Inc. DBA Air Quality Consultants was founded to assist manufacturing businesses in permitting and compliance reporting to various local, state and federal environmental regulatory agencies. .
In 2015, AQC expanded its service offering and initiated an emissions brokerage desk. AQC’s emissions brokerage desk provides consulting and brokerage services in the compliance and voluntary emissions market throughout the world. The company has a successful track record within the voluntary carbon offset credit markets, low carbon fuel standard credits, greenhouse gas compliance markets, and regional emission reduction credit markets throughout the US.
As a consulting and brokerage firm, AQC’s brokers utilize their expertise to provide market education and transactional services. Our mission is to guide our clients to maximize value, minimize regulatory costs, and provide the ease of transaction – whether managing regulatory compliance or satisfying sustainability goals.
How do we work?
01.
ASSES YOUR NEEDS
We Identify your needs, assist in market education and identify environmental products best suited for you
02.
NAVIGATE THE POSSIBILITIES
We tap into our expansive network of clients to find the best possible options for your needs.
03.
FORMULATE A STRATEGY
We find the best solution that meets your projects, company compliance and sustainability goals
04.
EXECUTE AND DELIVER
Market experience reduces your risk as we identify the correct product that best suits the compliance and sustainability objective
05.
TRANSACTIONAL SERVICES
Our dedicated back office staff manages the transactional process from start to finish. Reducing risk for our buyers and sellers.
Who is AQC?
Ed Laird
Chief Executive Officer
Ed Laird founded AQC in 1984, has over 40 years of experience in the emissions industry as a chemist, coatings manufacturer, and providing environmental services. In addition to being the CEO of AQC since 1984, he is also the founder and CEO of Laird Coatings Corporation (formerly Coatings Resource Corporation - founded in 1976) and was a founder/CEO of two other manufacturing/spray coatings companies, all of which are highly specialized custom coatings companies serving a variety of industrial clients including those in aerospace, automotive, and television sectors. He served as in several advisory positions to industry and government regulatory agencies in the formulation and assessment of environmental impacts from various solvent, paint, and coating formulations. He also served on the South Coast Air Quality Management District(SCAQMD)‘s VOC RECLAIM Advisory Task Force in the early 1990’s; formed Small Business Coalition in the late 1990‘s and for several years represented their interests in the SCAQMD’s regulatory system. Ed Laird has been a great technical and business resource person to not only AQC and its clients but also to several industries and government agencies in California.
Jeff Laird
Director of Origination
Jeff has served as President of AQC since 1994. Jeff was instrumental in developing software to assist customers in keeping track of daily VOC emissions. He has an excellent understanding and knowledge of computers, operating systems, hardware and software. He is also the President of an Laird Coatings Corporation and has firsthand experience dealing with regulatory agencies like the State Waterboard, SCAQMD, Orange County Health Agency, and the Fire Department. Jeff has a BA in Marketing/Business Administration from California State University, Long Beach and a MBA from Chapman University.
Jaclyn Ferlita
Vice President, Emissions Markets
Ms. Ferlita manages AQC’s environmental emissions and brokerage business, focusing on California’s many and varied regional markets, and the state’s AB 32 carbon Cap-and-Trade program. Jackie began her career in the environmental markets as head of Business Development for Air Quality Consultants (AQC) in Huntington Beach, CA. Her main tasks at AQC were emissions aggregation and emissions appraisal for the South Coast Air Quality Management District. Prior to re-joining AQC, Jackie was Vice President of California Emissions Markets at Element Markets, where she assumed a variety of roles, working on the development of numerous greenhouse gas offset projects and environmental commodity origination in the emissions markets. As a member of the South Coast AQMD Home Rule Advisory Committee, Western States Petroleum Association, California Independent Petroleum Association, and Environmental Coalition of Orange County, she stays abreast of regulatory changes and industry developments within the state. In May 2012, Ms. Ferlita was recognized at one of Orange County’s “Top 40 under 40” young professionals. Ms. Ferlita has a BA in Political Science from the University of California Los Angeles and an MBA with an emphasis on Finance from Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business Management.
Mithun Rathore
Director of Origination
Mithun Rathore joined AQC as the Director of Origination in September 2019. Mithun’s started with Natsource Asset Management, LLC in 2004, focusing on the environmental markets of Southern California. He’s built a 15-year career educating and guiding clients through esoteric & volatile emissions trading programs, offering solutions to optimize environmental compliance assets. With a network of 200+ clients and customers throughout California, Mithun brings to AQC the market knowledge and execution ability our customers depend on.
Mackenzie Romano
Environmental Support Specialist
Ms. Romano is responsible for providing transactional support to the AQC brokerage team and provides back office support and analysis to the environmental consulting team. She also acts as a liaison between AQC and various regulatory agencies and emissions market platforms/exchanges. She completed her undergraduate studies in Political Science and Environmental Systems and Society at UCLA and has held several environmentally-focused positions since graduating in 2013. This includes work at Center for Sustainable Energy in San Diego, California where she was a part of the Self-Generation Incentive Program team, providing incentives for energy storage systems. Ms. Romano has also worked in Melbourne, Australia during an 8-month period of international travel. She is passionate about sustainability, healthy living, music, and seeing as much of the world as possible.
Check the range of Environmental Credit Markets that we service
