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COURSE INFO PROVIDER: SWSPCP Webinar
COURSE TITLE: SWS Sackett Symposium

INSTRUCTORS Professor Royal C. Gardner
James A. Thomas, Senior PWS, CWB
Bob Kerr, SPWS, PWD, VSWD
Leandra Cleveland, PWS

COURSE DESCRIPTION Abstract: This presentation is regarding the state of federal wetlands policy after more than a year of operating in a post-Sackett decision world. An experienced panel of consulting and academia professionals from Virginia, Florida, Texas and Ohio have come together for this Sackett Symposium to discuss and present on what are or are not waters of the U.S. and our nation's present-day WOTUS regulations. A question and answer session will also be conducted to clarify any questions on the panelists' presentations.

Speaker Bios:
Royal Gardner is Professor of Law and Director of the Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy at Stetson University College of Law. He has worked on wetland law and policy issues for more than three decades, beginning in the Pentagon. Recent projects include coauthoring amicus briefs on behalf of environmental scientists and scientific societies. He was lead counsel for an amicus brief filed on behalf of twelve scientific societies, including SWS, in Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as well as for the amicus brief filed for aquatic scientists and scientific societies (again including SWS) that the U.S. Supreme Court cited in the case of County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund. He is also the author of Lawyers, Swamps, and Money: U.S. Wetland Law, Policy, and Politics, which has a small cult following. His book Waters of the United States: POTUS, SCOTUS, WOTUS, and the Politics of a National Resource will be published by Island Press in December 2024.

James manages HDR's Environmental Regulatory Practice in the South Central Region and also serves as the firm’s Clean Water Act Permitting Practice lead, focusing on monitoring regulatory changes to help our clients understand the potential impacts to their business. He is a Sr. Professional Wetland Scientist with 30 years of experience, with an emphasis on State/Federal permitting and mitigation planning expertise in Clean Water Act (CWA) - Section 404 regulatory matters. James has led and supported wetland permitting and mitigation projects for a variety of infrastructure types, including restoration, in 12 USACE Districts.
James attended Texas A&M University and completed a M.S. researching wetland restoration methods on post-mined lands. Prior to joining HDR in 2000, James enjoyed roles with a smaller, regional consulting firm conducting wetland delineations and environmental studies on federal lands throughout the southern U.S., Panama, and Puerto Rico; and as a wildlife / wetlands biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on the Upper Coast Wetland Ecosystem Project based in Orange, Texas.

Bob Kerr has more than three decades of experience providing environmental services in Virginia. He has led environmental services for a variety of complex and high-profile projects in the Commonwealth and has served on state-level policy committees for topics regarding stormwater regulations, wetland regulation and coastal resilience.
Mr. Kerr’s clients include local governments and commercial and residential developers needing regulatory assistance with roadway, stormwater and resilience projects. His responsibilities include overseeing WSSI’s work in the Hampton Roads region: including wetland delineations and permitting, mitigation planning and design, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) document preparation, Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs), and permit compliance during construction.

Leandra is a PWS that has been delineating and permitting Waters of the US for over 24 years. She has spent her career working in the private sector as a scientist and project manager across numerous geographies and project types. Leandra is an active member of SWS and SWS-PCP having serviced in numerous roles through the years.

Course Duration: 90 minutes
Credit Points: 0.09

SYLLABUS/TOPICAL OUTLINE - Introduction - 3 minutes - Sackett Case: Legal Arguments on Features - Royal Gardner - 15 minutes - Introduce Panel - 1 minute - Sackett Case: Implementation - James Thomas - 10 minutes - Introduce Panel - 1 minute - Sackett Case: Implementation - Bob Kerr - MFRs and Adjacency Issues - 15 minutes - Introduce Panel - 1 minute - Effects of Ruling on COE District Actions - Public Policy & Regulations Section Findings, Leandra Cleveland - 5 minutes - Introduce Panel - 1 minute - Current Legal Case: Conflicting Rulings & (Pending) Decisions Royal Gardner - 10 minutes - Statements from Panel Members - 8 minutes - Q/A for Panel Members - 20 minutes

COURSE CONTACT

Jason Tucker
9999 Carver Road, Blue Ash, OH 45242-5552
jason.tucker@hdrinc.com
P: 5133492478
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