Charlie has focused on regulatory, legislative, and environmental matters before federal, state, and local agencies, including air, water and waste matters for over thirty years. His practice includes permitting, rulemaking, compliance, and enforcement matters involving air, water, waste, brownfields, and related regulatory programs. National litigation matters include representing the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce in the CAA NOx SIP Call litigation and the West Virginia Manufacturers Association in the CAA Section 126 cases against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Prior to joining Troutman Sanders, Charlie was in private practice in Washington, D.C., and Raleigh, and served in the EPA Office of General Counsel (OGC) for ten years as Assistant General Counsel and Chief of the National Standards Branch, and as Associate Director for the EPA Office of Congressional Liaison. While at the EPA, his responsibilities included PM and SO2 SIP implementation, hazardous air pollutants rulemakings and litigation, acid rain litigation and regulation, new source review, enforcement, and radiation matters. He also served as Congressional liaison for OGC and drafted substantial portions of the Bush Administration’s legislation enacted as the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, for which he received the EPA’s Gold Medal for Exceptional Service.

Charlie received his Bachelor of Science in Engineering (major in Electrical Engineering) from Duke University and worked as an Associate Design Engineer for the Sperry Rand Corporation prior to attending law school at the University of North Carolina. Following graduation from law school, he joined the legal department of Duke Power Company for several years before moving to Washington, D.C., to serve as Environmental Law Advisor for the Edison Electric Institute. He later established a Washington office for a large Midwestern law firm prior to joining EPA, and subsequently returned to private practice in Raleigh.

He is Past President and served on the Board of Directors for the Carolinas Air Pollution Control Association for the past seven years. He is a member of the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources and Administrative Law Sections of the North Carolina Bar Association, and serves as a member of the Council of the Environmental Section. Charlie is admitted to practice in North Carolina and the District of Columbia, before the U.S. district courts and courts of appeals for both jurisdictions, and the U.S. Supreme Court, where he was on the U.S. Government brief in the landmark administrative law decision, Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council.

Representative Experience
Recovery of beachfront lots for construction by overturning Division of Coastal Management permit ban due to vegetation line limitations and follow-on DCM rulemaking to confirm result.

Cleanup of soil and groundwater contamination at former seafood process for residential and commercial development.

CERCLA site cleanups, including representations on PRP committees, negotiation of cleanup technologies and requirements with EPA.

Superfund cleanup of former defense facility and return to commercial use.

Coastal site wetlands permitting and restoration programs and negotiations with the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers.

Residential development exclusion from Neuse buffer rules and negotiation of stream and wetlands restoration requirements.

Sale and transfer of all environmental permits for major pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, including hazardous waste incinerators and negotiating soil and groundwater cleanup programs.

Negotiating groundwater cleanups for contaminated properties with regulatory agencies and prior owners.

Establishing program for shared use of water treatment facilities at formerly commonly owned manufacturing plants.

Negotiating agreement with Division of Water Quality on surface water issues and impacts of groundwater contamination and seepage with monitoring well system.

Groundwater contamination and cleanup program at several manufacturing facilities.

Advising owner of contaminated coastal property on cleanup obligations & potential liability for future residential development.

UST cleanups and negotiations with Division of Waste Management.

Advising responsible party on manufactured gas plant cleanup site & legal obligations.

Soil and erosion control matters, including permit and enforcement appeals and negotiations.

Landfill permitting & negotiations for new facilities and extensions of existing facilities, administrative orders for penalty violations.

Advising on NPDES permit requirements obligations, including negotiations with DWQ.

Negotiating monetary penalties and future control requirements for permittees.

Administrative appeals of process and stormwater permits.

Oil spill cleanups and civil penalty negotiations with EPA & the Coast Guard.

While at EPA, conducted litigation and on brief in the Vinyl Chloride en banc decision, D.C. Circuit, and the Dual Definition of Source NSR rehearing in the D.C. Circuit & on Government brief in subsequent appeal to the United States Supreme Court, Chevron v. NRDC.

Advising clients on the creation of Nonattainment New Source Review emission offset credits and establishing offset banking programs in North and South Carolina.

New Source Review and minor source construction permit issuances and appeals in several States.

Title V permit applications, negotiations, and appeals in several States.

Administrative appeals of enforcement matters, and negotiation of administrative orders and penalty reductions.

While at EPA, responsible for legal advice and defense of standards for low-level and high-level radioactive wastes, uranium mill tailings, indoor radon & radionuclides.

Negotiating Title IV excess emissions penalty settlement with US Department of Justice and EPA.

Permitting of public utility, independent power projects and co-generation facilities.

NPDES permit negotiations and appeals for several major power plant facilities.

Utility commission licensing and permitting for power plants.

Utility commissions proceedings and approvals for telephone services.

Advising commercial property developers on Dry Cleaning Act cleanups.

OSHA matters – claims vs. plant, review of plant compliance.

Construction – contracts and construction projects, including DOT form contract, claims litigation, contractor licensing and P.E. matters.

Professional & Community Activities
Carolinas Air Pollution Control Association (CAPCA) – Past President & Member of the Board of Directors for seven years, Member of Board Governance Committee.

John Locke Foundation, Member of Board of Directors.

North Carolina Bar Association – Environmental & Administrative Law Sections, Council Member of the Environmental Section.

Selected Presentations & Honors
Selected for The Best Lawyers in America for Environmental Law.

NC Environmental Health & Safety School, sponsored by the N.C. Manufacturers & Chemical Industry Council, Steering Committee, Speaker & Moderator.

NCBA Environment, Energy & Natural Resources Law Annual Meeting Presenter.

ABA Section of Environment, Energy & Resources Annual Meeting, San Diego, California, Panel Moderator & Presenter on Global Climate Change.

“EPA’s NOx SIP Call: Ozone Transport Remedy or Economic Engineering?”, presented at the ABA Conference on Key Environmental Issues in EPA Region IV.

“The Title V Permit Shield: Can It Survive the Credible Evidence Rule?”, published in the Air & Waste Management Association journal, EM, and first presented at the Technical Meeting of the Carolinas Air Pollution Control Association.

EPA Gold Medal for Exceptional Service for contributions to the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments.

EPA Bronze Medal for the Benzene Hazardous Air Pollutant standards.