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