Mr. Dunn is an environmental attorney with PoynerSpruill, LLP in Raleigh, North Carolina. After receiving his law degree and a master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from UNC-Chapel Hill, he worked with the N. C. Department of Environmental Quality for over eight years, with his last position being general counsel. In 1985 he joined PoynerSpruill to expand the firm’s areas of practice to environmental law. In his 39 years with PoynerSpruill, he has represented both private and public clients in practically all areas of environmental law and particularly has advised cities and counties regarding wastewater compliance issues and consolidation of water and wastewater treatment facilities and services. Most relevant to this seminar, Mr. Dunn was the legal advisor for the formation of the Neuse River Compliance Association (NRCA), an association of point source wastewater dischargers in the lower Neuse River Basin formed over 20 years ago to comply with a then-pending total maximum daily load for nitrogen in the lower Neuse River estuary.  Subsequent to the formation of the NRCA, Mr. Dunn served for many years as legal counsel for the NRCA and the Lower Neuse Basin Association, a previously- existing monitoring association, in establishing by-laws and rules for their membership and operations and for jointly carrying out their complementary functions.  

Attorney with Burns, Day & Presnell, P.A.Mr. Higgins focuses on representing businesses and public utility companies involved in the telecommunications,water, sewer, power and renewable energy industries. This representation includes regular appearances and practice before the North Carolina Utilities Commission, and the North Carolina Rural Electrification Authority, and includes occasional involvement in matters before the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He worked in the Special Prosecutions Section of the Attorney General’s Office for four years and is a founding member of Burns, Day and Presnell, P.A. Mr. Higgins has over 25 years’ experience in practicing before the North Carolina Utilities Commission, and he has represented incumbent local exchange carriers, water and sewer service providers, competitive local exchange companies, commercial mobile radio service providers, natural gas companies, municipalities, and municipal power agencies. 

Partner with Poyner Spruill LLPMr. Johnson is chair of Poyner Spruill’s Land Use, Utilities, Government, Environmental and Real Estate Section, and he leads the Sustainability Practice Group and E-Discovery Team. His practice focuses on environmental and municipal law, and commercial litigation. He has guided clients through virtually every state program designed to address contaminated property, including brownfields agreements, the dry-cleaning solvent program, petroleum underground storage tanks and reimbursements, and voluntary cleanups under the state’s inactive hazardous sites law. His litigation experience includes citizens suits, class action lawsuits, and litigation under the state Administrative Procedures Act over inter-basin water transfers and penalties and other enforcement actions initiated by state environmental authorities. Mr. Johnson has assisted developers and local governments with the planning, permitting and construction of a variety of projects, including solid waste recycling and disposal facilities, and compliance with the state Environmental Policy Act. 

Partner with Marlies Kelley Law OfficesMs. Kelley practices law in the private sector as a partner in Marlies Kelley Law Offices where she assists her clients with environmental law matters. She entered private practice after eight years as an executive with the state agency now known as the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality. She held positions as general counsel, assistant secretary and chief deputy secretary and helped shape policy, regulation and enforcement in both water quality and water quantity issues. Prior to joining the agency, Ms. Kelley worked in the N.C. Department of Justice as an Assistant Attorney General. In that role, she represented the agency in issues involving water quality, land quality, animal waste management, well driller’s certification, and coastal management. She also advised the agency on drafting state rules to implement the federal program commonly known as Phase II Stormwater and defended those rules as they progressed through layers of review. She was recognized for her environmental leadership by all three cabinet secretaries with which she served. Ms. Kelley serves on the Council for the NC Bar Association’s Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Section and Co-chairs its Pro Bono Committee. 

Director of the Environmental Law and Policy Center at Duke University School of LawMr. Longest teaches Water Resources Law at Duke University School of Law. He also directs the Environmental Law and Policy Clinic, which teaches students how to represent nonprofit environmental organizations as part of a public interest law firm. Before he became a professor, Mr. Ryke was a Special Deputy Attorney General working for the North Carolina Department of Justice. During his 14-year career at NCDOJ, he represented state agencies charged with protecting North Carolina’s environment. Mr. Ryke’s practice has included client counseling, trial representation and appellate work at all levels. He received his B.A. degree in English from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill in 1987 and graduated from the University of North Carolina School of Law in 1991.

Partner with Troutman Sanders LLPMr. Sullivan is a partner in the firm’s environmental practice. His practice focuses on compliance counseling and enforcement defense regarding all of the major federal environmental statutes, as well as the preparation of comments on federal and state rulemakings, brownfields redevelopment, and environmental support for the firm’s corporate and real estate practices. He regularly advises manufacturers and electric utilities regarding air permitting and compliance questions, NPDES and wetlands permitting, hazardous waste management, the regulation of pesticides, tier II reporting and toxic release inventory reporting. Mr. Sullivan has also assisted developers to negotiate a number of Brownfields Agreements with the North Carolina Brownfields Program.