In 1980, I was about to be promoted from a lab tech III to plant electrochemist. I was told that I would also be responsible for the environmental activities at the plant and I would have to become licensed to operate the wastewater treatment system. It was anticipated that my environmental duties would only require about 10 percent of my time.

I studied the state rules and regulations and passed the test on my first attempt. At first, it was easy enough to keep up with the required duties as plant environmental officer but as the rules continued to pile on, the plant metallurgist was drafted to help me keep up. The parent company set up a corporate environmental staff and reporting structure down to the plant level.

Eventually, I was promoted to a mid-level management position, where it was my duty to oversee environmental activities for 10 of the company's facilities. As getting permits and licenses became more complex, the parent company assigned one of their corporate lawyers to be available to the environmental department as needed. Interestingly, they told the lawyer that his environmental duties should only take about 10 percent of his time.

As time passed, the lawyer found his environmental duties, and he was spending much more time reading regulations with me and discussing their potential impacts for the company. Lawyer-speak was necessarily incorporated in the permits we negotiated.

Environmental issues continued to grow and even flourish – not only in the United States but around the globe. Other countries became eager to work with the U.S. EPA to learn more and set their own standards. Suddenly, I was in Italy, sharing my experiences and helping our business partners implement their own environmental controls. Before returning home I offered a bit of advice: keeping up with changes is going to require 110 percent.

The Code of Federal Regulations Title 40 constantly morphed and environmental professionals strove to keep up with changes. Technology changed and we learned to treat constituents to levels that were unknown 30 to 50 years ago.

The courts also have grown to be an integral part of the regulatory process. As more rules and regulations flowed from the pens at the agencies, the courts were forced to provide the ultimate interpretations for the citizenry. Today, special courts are strictly tasked to handle complex environmental issues. According to a report from the World Resources Institute titled, Greening Justice: Creating and Improving Environmental Courts and Tribunals, there are now 350 such courts in 41 countries.

There are no signs that this growth is going to come to an end. I expect that financial wizards will develop additional environmental hurtles. PE