Collection: Perspectives on Modern Regulatory Governance
Date of interview: April 17, 2015 and April 29, 2015
Interviewers: Kate Preston; Edward Balleisen and Ashton Merck
Interview length: Two sessions of two hours each (no audio access)
Transcript: Not available
Location of interview: Kenan Institute for Ethics, Duke University, Durham, NC
Biography: Amy Pickle graduated from the University of Florida, Gainesville in 1994 with a B.A. in English and B.S. in Chemistry. She graduated from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Law in 2000, where she was involved with the community of environmental lawyers and was on the Environmental Law Review. From 2001-2003, Pickle was Assistant Attorney General for the NC Department of Justice. She focused on administrative property, contract and environmental laws and oversaw the implementation of the Smithfield Agreements. After leaving the DOJ, Pickle became the Lead Water Quality Attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center from 2003-2008, where she continued to work closely with a variety of stakeholders on North Carolina water policy. Since 2008, Pickle has been the Director for State Policy at the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University. Since 2014, Pickle has been the Vice Chair of the North Carolina Mining and Energy Commission.
Brief summary: The first interview spans Amy’s early life up to her recent appointment as Director for State Policy at the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions; the second interview focuses on her work on the Mining and Energy Commission and hydraulic fracturing in North Carolina. Interview access is currently restricted. Please see the Timeline of Hydraulic Fracturing in North Carolina for more details.
Time range of discussion: 1994 – 2014
Institutions discussed
NCDENR – Division of Water Quality, Division of Air Quality
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service
NC Coastal Resources Commission
NC Environmental Management Commission
U.S. Geological Survey
Energy Information Administration
Legislation and rules discussed
Smithfield Agreement
Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (REPS)
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
Oil Pollution Control Act
Falls Lake Nutrient Strategy
notice-and-comment rulemaking, stakeholder groups, regulatory reform, regulatory diffusion, negotiated rulemaking, trade secrets, regulatory capture
Specific locations discussed
Duplin County
Sampson County
Sanford
Durham County
Anson County
Firms mentioned
Research Triangle Institute (RTI)
Swine: Smithfield Foods, Murphy Farms, the Alliance for the Responsible Swine Industry, Frontline Farmers
Environmental Law: Environmental Law Project, Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions (NIEPS), Waterkeepers Alliance, Southern Environmental Law Center, The Environmental Defense Fund
Oil/Petroleum: Center for Sustainable Shale, American Petroleum Institute
Mining and Energy Commission: Rules Committee, Environmental Standards Committee, Water and Waste Committee, Administration of Oil and Gas Committee
Keywords
Hurricane Floyd, Hydraulic fracturing, water quality
People mentioned
Don Horstein, Ryke Longest, Joe Kalo, Mike Easley, Roy Cooper, Rick Dove, Bill Holman, Beverly Perdue, Dave Murrow, Dr. Kenneth Taylor, Dr. Jeff Reid, Jim Womack, Vikram Rao
