Water Quality Workshop Library 2021

B.S. Fisheries and Wildlife Science, N.C. State University, M.S. Natural Resources - Hydrology, N.C. State University. Mr. Smith has worked for the Department of Environmental Quality for 28 years. He started with the Division of Water Resources as an Ambient Monitor in 1992, and continued with the Division in positions including technician, specialist, program consultant, and environmental compliance supervisor. He was Supervisor for the Raleigh Regional Office of Division of Water Resources for 12 years.  Most recently, Mr. Smith served as the Director for the Division of Energy Mineral and Land Resources and returned to Water Resources in February of 2021 as the Division of Water Resources’ Director.

danny.smith@ncdenr.gov

Drew Hargrove is an Assistant General Counsel with N.C. Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ).  Since joining NCDEQ in 2014, he has worked on a wide range of legal matters, but works primarily with NCDEQ’s Division of Water Resources.  Drew currently serves on the Council for the N.C. Bar Association’s Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources Section.  While in law school at UNC- Chapel Hill, Drew was a staff member of the North Carolina Journal of Law and Technology and a member of the law school’s Environmental Law Project.  Prior to earning his law degree, Drew worked for several years in the investment management business.

drew.hargrove@ncdenr.gov

Christopher “Chris” Ventaloro is a Water Quality Standards Co-coordinator in the Planning Section of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Resources. His main function in this role is to research and review EPA publications and scientific literature for the purpose of developing surface water quality criteria and to bring proposed criteria through the rulemaking process for establishment as state water quality standards. Chris brings a variety of knowledge to this role including 20 years of laboratory experience in aquatic toxicology, wet chemistry, and microbiology as well as an education in biology (B.S., Long Island University-Southampton) and GIS. When not working Chris will likely be found spilling water while doing maintenance on his aquarium, filling his garage with sawdust, torturing his wife and cats while he “plays” guitar, and being taken out for long walks by his dog, Molly.

christopher.ventaloro@ncdenr.gov

Julie Grzyb (pronounced Gribb) is the Deputy Director for North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality - Division of Water Resources. She has worked for DWR since 2009, first as a NPDES permit writer and later as Supervisor over the Municipal & Industrial Permitting Branch. Her focus has been on addressing emerging compounds in the Cape Fear, remediation at the Chemours facility in Fayetteville, and implementation of the state's dissolved metal standards. Prior to working at DWR, Julie was a Water Resource Manager for Virginia, DEQ and the Industrial Permitting Supervisor for Ohio EPA's southwest regional office.  Julie earned her B.S. degree from the College of Engineering at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY.  She enjoys all water activities but mostly relaxing and canoeing on the lake.

julie.grzyb@ncdenr.gov

Michael Montebello is the Supervisor of the Municipal Unit in the Division of Water Resources. He has been with the State of North Carolina since April 2020. He presently addresses major municipal NPDES, pretreatment programs and Collection System permitting along with related program priorities.

Michael was the former Domestic Wastewater Section Manager in the SC Bureau of Water. He oversaw permitting for the Domestic NPDES and Non-Discharge wastewater, wastewater treatment plant design review, pretreatment program review, Industrial wastewater pretreatment system permitting, domestic sludge land application permitting, compliance and enforcement assistance; Michael was also responsible for the SC Water Quality Standards updates, NPDES regulation updates and was a “Superuser” in the development of the Bureau of Water’s ePermitting integration for the Agency. Michael retired after nearly forty years of service.

michael.montebello@ncdenr.gov

Jeff Poupart has been the Chief of the Water Quality Permitting Section of the Division of Water Resources since 2015.  This Section administers permitting and compliance functions for NPDES Wastewater and Collection Systems, Non-Discharge, 401 and Buffers, Animal Feeding Operations and Transportation Permitting.   Jeff has been with DWR since 1992 serving in a variety of areas.   Jeff graduated from Aquinas College in 1990 with a BS in Chemistry.  He is also a retired Air Force Reserve Major.

jeff.poupart@ncdenr.gov

Bridget Shelton is the Groundwater Standards Coordinator in the Classifications, Standards, and Rules Review Branch in the Water Resources Planning Section of DWR. She is responsible for developing the groundwater standards of the state which are the maximum allowable concentrations resulting from any discharge of contaminants which may be tolerated without creating a threat to human health. She is also responsible for the triennial review of existing groundwater standards, making recommendations to the Environmental Management Commission, and developing interim maximum allowable concentrations (IMACs). She has been with DWR for 3 years and has a Master’s degree in Ecotoxicology and Environmental Health from Duke University.

bridget.shelton@ncdenr.gov

Rick Bolich is the Section Chief of the Groundwater Resources Section of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Resources (DWR).  Rick has been with the DWR (DWQ) since 1999, and has worked as a hydrogeologist, program consultant, assistant regional supervisor, and regional supervisor in the Raleigh Regional Office and DWR Central Office.  Prior to joining the DWR, Rick was a private hydrogeologic consultant and owner of Geo-Solutions, Inc. in Raleigh, NC, and he was employed as a staff hydrogeologist for Metcalf and Eddy in the company’s Wakefield Massachusetts headquarters and New Jersey offices.  Rick earned a BS in geology from the University of Miami (Fla.) and an MS in geology from N.C. State University.  Rick is a licensed geologist in North Carolina and Virginia.  Rick can be reached at rick.bolich@ncdenr.gov and by telephone at 919-707-3671.

rick.bolich@ncdenr.gov

Annette is the Supervisor of the DEQ Stormwater Program. Annette is a licensed professional engineer who has worked in various aspects of stormwater planning, design, permitting and education in DEQ for 25 years. She has a bachelor’s degree from Duke University in Public Policy Studies and a master’s degree from NC State University in Civil Engineering. In 2019, she was named as the H. R. Malcom Stormwater Professional of the Year.

annette.lucas@ncdenr.gov

Tom Tharrington is the Assistant Regional Supervisor for the Water Quality Regional Operations Section in the Wilmington Regional Office, he has nearly 35 years of experience in the public and private sector. Prior to joining NCDEQ in 2004, Tom worked with BASF Corp, Takeda Chemical Products, Cogentrix and E.I. Dupont de Nemours and has a diverse background that comprises technical and managerial experiences, wastewater treatment process control, groundwater monitoring and remediation, regulatory oversight and staff/operator training. Along with a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies and Geology, Tom maintains operator certifications for Biological Wastewater 4, Land Application of Residual Solids, Spray Irrigation, Subsurface and Physical/Chemical 1.

tom.tharrington@ncdenr.gov