Douglas S. Morrison

Of Counsel

Doug Morrison counsels and represents clients on a wide variety of environmental issues and claims, including air quality, water and stormwater discharges, solid and hazardous waste, chemical use and storage, contaminated properties, mergers and acquisitions and real estate transactions. Doug expertly oversees workplace safety issues involving chemical use and exposure. He regularly aids clients faced with federal, state or local agency enforcement actions as well as citizen suits on all these topics. Doug helps clients devise Environmental, Health and Safety management systems to minimize liabilities and orchestrates auditing programs to manage compliance.

Doug is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubble. This is the highest peer rating standard, given only to attorneys who are ranked at the highest level of professional excellence for their legal expertise, communication skills, and ethical standards by their peers.

Expand/Collapse All

Representative industrial clients include all oil & gas sectors, pulp and paper, forest products, seafood processing, forest products, mining, wastewater treatment, mineral processing, aerospace, metal working and coating, agricultural chemicals, and food processing.

Energy and utility sector clients include public and private utilities, gas and coal electrical generation, coal mining, rural electric utilities, and pipelines.

Real estate sector clients include every category of real estate owner from homeowners with heating oil tank issues to large developers.

Commercial and small business clients include trucking, gas stations, and chemical suppliers and distributors.

Public sector clients include Ports, municipalities, and counties.

Air Quality Permitting and Compliance. Doug has advised and represented the industrial/manufacturing sector on nearly all facets of air quality permitting and compliance, including major and minor source construction permitting, Title V air operating permits, NESHAP and NSPS regulations, and defense of administrative, civil judicial and criminal enforcement actions by federal, state and local agencies as well as citizen suits.
Water Quality Permitting and Compliance. Doug helps clients with wastewater and stormwater discharges obtain proper permits and defend against enforcement actions. He has represented hundreds of clients on NPDES individual and general permits, stormwater permitting, and pretreatment permitting, compliance and enforcement matters.
Chemical Use and Storage. Clients benefit from Doug’s representation on Emergency Planning and Right-to-Know compliance and reporting, chemical import and export laws, and pesticide and fertilizer regulations.
Hazardous and Solid Waste. Doug advises and represents both small and large businesses on hazardous and solid waste issues. He expertly deciphers complex issues of waste designation, recycling, reclamation, treatment, and permitting issues.
Occupational Health and Safety. Employers faced with federal and state work safety issues, including claims related to worker chemical exposure, rely on Doug for counsel and representation.
Contaminated Property. Doug routinely manages contaminated property matters ranging from home heating oil leaks to gas station cleanups to complex real estate transactions.
Business Transactions. Doug has been a valuable member of teams working on asset and stock transactions and mergers and acquisitions, overseeing all environmental due diligence, permit and license transfers for both buyers and sellers including Fortune 500 companies.
Environmental Management Systems. Businesses derive high and long-term value from Doug’s in-depth understanding of Environmental Management Systems. His keen knowledge of international EMS standards, EPA auditing policy and procedure, EPA enforcement practice, guidance and policy, DOJ policy and guidance, federal sentencing guidelines, and federal contracting debarment regulations and procedures provides insight for clients on how best to establish and implement lean, workable EMS solutions.

Member, Washington State Bar Association, Environmental & Land Use Law Section
Member, Air & Waste Management Association

Senior Counsel, Miller Nash LLP (2018–2021)
Founder and Owner, Environmental Law Northwest (2002-2018)
Partner, Lane Powell LLP (1999-2002)
Senior Associate, Bogle & Gates (1994-1999)
Environmental Counsel, Northwest Pulp & Paper Association (1986-1994)
Law Clerk and Contract Attorney, Bonneville Power Administration (1983-1986)

J.D., Northwestern School of Law at Lewis & Clark College, 1985 Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law
B.A., University of Colorado Boulder, 1980, Environmental, Population and Organismic Biology

Oregon State Bar
Washington State Bar Association
Alaska Bar Association
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Big Brother, King County Big Brothers/Sisters
Board Member, Association of Washington Business
Coach and Umpire, Bellevue East Little League baseball and softball
President and Board Member, Western States Petroleum Association Pacific Northwest Associates
Board Member and Architectural Control Committee Chair, Tam O’Shanter Golf & Country Club