Governor McCrory Announces Charlotte Engineer to Lead N.C. Environmental Commission | Eastern North Carolina Now

    News Release:

    Raleigh, N.C.     Governor Pat McCrory and Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Secretary Donald R. van der Vaart announced today the appointment of Steve J. Rowlan as chairman of the N.C. Environmental Management Commission (EMC). The 15-member commission makes rules for North Carolina's air and water resources.

    "Steve has considerable expertise as an environmental engineer and professional experience with environmental regulation," said Governor McCrory. "I am confident that as chairman, he will continue to be a vigilant steward of North Carolina's precious environment."

    Rowlan is a licensed civil engineer and the Director of Environmental Affairs at Nucor, a steel and steel products company headquartered in Charlotte. Nucor is also one of the largest recyclers of steel in North America.

    He was appointed to the EMC by Governor McCrory in December 2015. Rowlan succeeds Gerard P. Carroll who has served as chair since March 2015 and will remain a member of the commission. Carroll worked at the industrial manufacturing company National Gypsum for more than 22 years.

    "Leading North Carolina's environmental board is an extremely time-consuming position that greatly impacts the way the state manages its air and water resources," said van der Vaart. "I sincerely thank Chairman Carroll for his service and leadership over the past year and have great confidence that Mr. Rowlan will continue the commission's work in protecting and preserving North Carolina's abundant natural resources."

    Beginning in February, the EMC will transition to an annual rotation of the chairmanship. Defined term limits allow for diversity in leadership and ensure the responsibility of chairmanship is equally dispersed amongst commission members.

    Contact: Crystal Feldman
       govpress@nc.gov