EPA Executive Steven E. Chester Rejoins Miller Canfield
Miller Canfield announces that Steven E. Chester has rejoined the firm as senior counsel in the Energy, Environmental and Regulatory Group after a distinguished career in the public sector. He most recently served as Deputy Assistant Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance in Washington, D.C. Prior to that service, he was Director of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ).
“We’re delighted to have Steve back on our environmental team,” said Michael McGee, CEO of Miller Canfield. “He brings an unmatched level of experience in both the private and public sectors on a broad range of challenging and complex environmental matters. That level of experience will offer real advantages for our clients.”
While with EPA, Chester worked with the fifty state environmental agencies to develop a balanced, national enforcement program, and provided policy and management guidance on numerous agency enforcement initiatives, including efforts to allow municipalities to use low-impact design, green infrastructure technologies to manage wastewater and stormwater discharges.
As MDEQ Director, Chester secured greater protection of Michigan’s water resources and the Great Lakes by advocating for water withdrawal and invasive species legislation. Additionally, he guided the Michigan Climate Action Council in developing a climate action plan to mitigate the adverse impacts of greenhouse gases on the state’s residents and environment, led a successful effort to greatly reduce the time needed to review and issue air permits, and co-chaired a multi-stakeholder initiative to make Michigan a leader in energy efficiency and clean energy technology development.
His other public sector experience includes litigation and appellate advocacy to enforce federal and state environmental standards as an Assistant Attorney General in the Environmental Protection Division of the Michigan Attorney General’s Office, and an earlier stint with the EPA as Deputy Director of the Office of Criminal Enforcement.
Chester was previously Of Counsel and a Principal of Miller Canfield from 1995 to 2003.
He received his J.D. (1982) from Wayne State University Law School and his B.S. (1977) from Michigan State University.