Mary C. Stewart, Esq., Of Counsel to the Goldstein Environmental Law Firm, P.A., practices exclusively in the area of environmental law, specializing in regulatory and transactional matters related to contaminated site cleanup and redevelopment. Prior to joining the Firm Ms. Stewart served as a Senior Attorney with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for 21 years, capping her career there as the lead Office of General Counsel lawyer in charge of negotiating an array of institutional controls in support of conditional closure under Chapter 62-780, Florida Administrative Code, including Declarations of Restrictive Covenant, Memoranda of Understanding with state agencies such as the Florida Department of Transportation and the Southwest Florida Water Management District, the employment of permeable and impermeable materials as cover to eliminate the risk of direct contact to contaminants in the subsurface, and the innovative use of nonrecorded controls such as municipal ordinances, to achieve the same measure of perpetual, protective, and legally enforceable protection as recorded controls. During the course of her lengthy career with FDEP, Ms. Stewart worked with technical and program staff to successfully negotiate hundreds of DRCs with private developers, business owners, local governments, lenders, state agencies, and the federal government.
Ms. Stewart was instrumental in the continuous development and revision of FDEP’s Institutional Controls Procedures Guidance, and her deep knowledge of Florida’s Risk-Based Corrective Action cleanup process, which provides for a variety of options and tools to manage risk at contaminated sites, has been carefully honed as FDEP’s lead DRC counsel. During her tenure with FDEP, Ms. Stewart also represented and advised FDEP technical staff and management in the Petroleum Restoration, Storage Tanks, and Waste Cleanup Programs. Additionally, Ms. Stewart was FDEP’s government liaison to the Florida Legislature, tracking all environmental bills during Florida’s legislative session, presenting FDEP’s position in public committees and other meetings, and negotiating with legislators, their staff and stakeholders, and with the Governor’s Office staff and policy team. Ms. Stewart was also FDEP’s lead lobbyist on the original Dry Cleaning Program legislation and multiple RBCA bills.
Direct Business Phone Number : (305) 777-1684