In December 2002, Governor-elect Jennifer Granholm announced the appointment of Steve Chester, an environmental attorney, to head the Department of Environmental Quality. Although well-known to some environmental advocates, Chester was little-known to the general public. His early performance in the job has won praise from environmental groups. We asked him to reflect on his first months as DEQ director.

MEC: What has been the biggest surprise about your job in the first 6 months of the Administration?

Chester: The biggest surprise is how much of my time and energy has been spent on budget related issues, versus substantive environmental issues.

MEC: What would you list as your accomplishments so far and why?

Definitely the creation of the Environmental Advisory Council. The Council is a diverse group of people, representing businesses, environmental groups, and municipal government. The formation of this council has established a dialogue between various stakeholders that was not there under the previous administration. The charge of this council is to provide recommendations to the DEQ on policy issues and matters of law. The first task given to this group is to review the current public participation process and make recommendations as to how much public involvement should there be in the various permitting programs within the DEQ. The Council has worked diligently to address this issue.

There's also been a turnaround in attitude of staff. There was a morale issue here that is now changed. Staff is included in, and is a part of the decision making process. My management style is more of a bottom up approach versus top down. I think that many of the issues can be resolved at the Division level without automatically being elevated to the Executive Division. Having said that, I recognize that there will be times where it is appropriate to elevate an issue. In those instances, the meeting will not bypass staff; issues brought to the Director level will include appropriate staff and, as appropriate, legal counsel.

I also created an enforcement work group that has submitted a number of recommendations including establishing a predictable, reliable, and effective enforcement program. Predictable in the sense that we will do our best to minimize surprises by educating the regulated community as to what is expected of them under the law, and by providing compliance assistance to small businesses as best we can given fiscal realities. Reliable in the sense that the public and regulated community will know with a high degree of certainty that non-compliance with the law will result in an enforcement response. Effective in the sense that the DEQ will choose the enforcement response most appropriate to the violation and the one that will best achieve overall compliance by the regulated community in a fair and evenhanded manner. The goal of the workgroup was to evaluate the enforcement processes within the DEQ and make recommendations as to how the DEQ could more effectively and efficiently enforce our programs. The workgroup has completed its task and a report has been prepared and is being reviewed by the Director.

The issuance of the Dow Chemical Company's operating license on June 12 was a major accomplishment. This was a highly controversial issue with the former administration last year. This year, Dow worked with DEQ to provide for review and issuance of an operating license without compromising environmental standards/values/morale. The license includes enhanced environmental monitoring and specifies Dow's off-site corrective action obligations. Under these obligations, Dow must address contamination of Midland area soils, Tittabawassee River sediments and flood plain, Saginaw River sediments and flood plain, and the Saginaw Bay. This license culminates months of collaborative work between the DEQ, Dow, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, local officials, and local environmental organizations to ensure that the interests of all parties have been served in protecting Michigan's environment. This decision had been the subject of extensive interest not only in the Midland, Saginaw, and Bay County areas, but across the country. I am confident that the license we issued will protect the environment and public health while meeting Dow's operational needs.

MEC: You've won praise for establishing an advisory council, but some have criticized it for lacking a representative of community-based, grassroots organizations. Do you plan to add a grassroots representative? Do you think citizens outside of Lansing can contribute to DEQ decision-making, and how?

Chester: I am not sure that I agree with the criticism. The advisory council is a large group of 24 members to begin with. A number of environmental, arguably grassroots organizations, are involved. There is geographic representation with many members outside of Lansing, including western, northern, and southeast Michigan. It is always a challenge to get broad-based representation where everyone is pleased. Over time, the composition of the board will change and we will remain sensitive to the interest of community-based, grassroots participation.

MEC: What did you bring to the job as a result of your prior experience in state government, EPA, and the private practice of law? How does this shape your decision-making?

Chester: My experiences in Wayne County, the state of Michigan, and the EPA have provided me with a solid foundation of how government works. Private practice has provided me with insight into the frustrations the regulated community has with large agencies, like the DEQ, and has made me mindful of those concerns. Working at each level of government-county, state, and federal-gives me, I think, a unique perspective on government.

MEC: How would you characterize your environmental philosophy? Would you call yourself an environmentalist?

Chester: Of course. I truly believe that we can accomplish environmental objectives, such as human health, environmental health, and the preservation of our natural legacy for future generations in a way that allows for economic growth and prosperity. It is not a zero sum game. If you think through the issues and are willing to work out the details, many of the goals and concerns are compatible.

MEC: What do you plan to do in the way of protecting the public's right to know? Will you appoint a right-to-know advocate, as recommended in April by the Environmental Integrity Project?

Chester: With most of my time being spent on the budget and other matters, I have not been able to give this a lot of thought. I strongly support the public's right-to-know, open government, and the freedom of obtaining information. Unfortunately, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is often abused by persons not intended to be beneficiaries of FOIA. The issue of appointing a right-to-know advocate is one that I need to give more thought to.

MEC: What impact is the state's budget plight having on your job and on DEQ?

We have spent so much time on budget matters, we have been unable to do work that we have been asked to do. I am hopeful that this is not something that will have to be repeated every year.

MEC: What has the Governor asked you to do as DEQ Director? How would you describe her philosophy on environmental issues, and are you comfortable with it?

Chester: I am very comfortable with her philosophy on environmental issues. She has provided a comprehensive environmental blueprint which identifies numerous proposals, goals, and priorities that I absolutely agree with. Her expectations of me are to implement this blueprint and establish and administer a predictable, reliable, effective enforcement program, which we are well on our way to doing. The Governor is a big believer, as I am, in open government and inclusiveness. We have reached out and met with various interest groups and allowed them to become involved in the decision-making.