Michael Cave Email & Phone Number

Austin, Texas, United States

The TCEQ Natural Resource Trustee Program fulfills the agency’s role as a Texas Natural Resource Trustee by evaluating injury to natural resources as a result of discharges of oil or releases of hazardous substances and seeking restoration of the injured resources and their services on behalf of the public. The program performs Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) activities according to OPA, CERCLA, OSPRA, and other regulations in close coordination with the other Texas Natural Resource Trustees, including the Texas General Land Office, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, U.S. Department of the Interior, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. My duties include:• Writing and reviewing highly technical scientific and legal documents concerning all phases of NRDA;• Providing NRDA oversight and technical expertise during oil spill and hazardous substance release response events;• Soliciting, evaluating, developing, and implementing construction, restoration, and land acquisition projects;• Planning, tracking, and reporting program funding and administrative costs;• Directing and evaluating contractors and consultants;• Developing and maintaining internal policies and procedures for the TCEQ Trustee Program;• Evaluating restoration projects for grants and other restoration funding programs (e.g., NFWF Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund, the Restore Act);• Providing information and transparency on NRDA activities by serving as a technical consultant to TCEQ staff and management, other Trustee agencies, elected officials, and the general public; and• Representing the TCEQ and the State of Texas as a Natural Resource Trustee Program liaison in external settings including spill/release events, professional and technical conferences, response organization meetings, and region-wide trustee councils.

Austin, Texas Area

I performed Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) activities according to OPA, CERCLA, OSPRA, and other regulations. This includes conducting assessments of injuries to natural resources from unauthorized releases of oil and hazardous materials and identifying restoration project alternatives to restore or replace injured natural resources. My duties included:• Writing and reviewing highly technical scientific and legal documents concerning all phases of NRDA (e.g., ecological risk assessments, ecological services analyses, restoration plans, environmental compliance reviews, NEPA assessments, project implementation plans, remedial designs, construction and monitoring plans and reports, memoranda of agreements/understanding, Trustee resolutions, funding and implementation agreements, consent decrees, settlements, real estate surveys and appraisals, conservation easements, and deed records);• Providing NRDA oversight and technical expertise during oil spill and hazardous substance release response events;• Planning, tracking, and reporting program funding and administrative costs;• Soliciting, evaluating, developing, and implementing construction, restoration, and land acquisition projects;• Directing and evaluating contractors and consultants;• Developing and maintaining internal policies and procedures for the TCEQ Trustee Program;• Evaluating restoration projects for grants and other restoration funding programs (e.g., NFWF Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund, the Restore Act);• Providing information and transparency on NRDA activities by serving as a technical consultant to TCEQ staff and management, other Trustee agencies, elected officials, and the general public; and• Representing the TCEQ and the State of Texas as a Natural Resource Trustee Program liaison in external settings including spill/release events, professional and technical conferences, response organization meetings, and region-wide trustee councils.

Austin, Texas, United States

I managed and administered the EPA grant funding TCEQ performance of site assessments for federal Superfund sites according to CERCLA. My duties included:• Identifying potentially contaminated sites from TCEQ enforcement and response investigations, federal referrals, historical waste records, and other sources, and gathering historical and other available information to evaluate whether the site posed a threat to human health and the environment and/or whether further investigation was needed;• Coordinating with local, state, and federal officials, the regulated community, and the public to access and sample source material, air, water, soil, and sediment to determine whether hazardous substances had been released to the environment• Analyzing laboratory reports to determine whether public notification of a health hazard was required; whether an immediate or short-term response action was necessary; and to whether a site was eligible for listing in the Federal National Priorities List or State Superfund program according to the Hazard Ranking System;• Documenting each phase of assessment in detailed technical reports, including Pre-CERCLIS Reports, Preliminary Assessments, Site Inspections, and Hazard Ranking System packages;• Mentoring Superfund staff, assigning and reviewing their work, and providing feedback to management on their performance for all tasks listed above; • Administering the PA/SI grant; preparing spending reports and cost estimates to state and federal management; performing grant maintenance using the TABS and BAMS databases; and preparing the annual program budget; • Preparing and reviewing program Standard Operating Procedures to ensure quality and consistency; and• Working with the Remediation Division Technical Support Section to review program procedures, evaluate sampling plans and laboratory reports for quality assurance/quality control, revise the Quality Assurance Project Plan, and conduct regular program audits.

Austin, Texas, United States

I managed the remediation of contaminated sites in state-lead programs, including the Superfund, Dry Cleaning Remediation, and Leaking Petroleum Storage Tank Program, for all phases of corrective action work including site investigations, monitoring, remediation, and systems operations and maintenance. My duties included:• Acquiring and applying technical expertise in sampling methodologies, risk assessment concepts, and remediation technologies in accordance with federal, state, agency, and program guidelines;• Providing oversight, coordination, and review of the activities of state remediation contractors in accordance with agency and contract requirements; • Prioritizing sites for further work; • Performing technical evaluations of sites; • Conducting five-year reviews of Operations and Maintenance-phase Federal Superfund sites;• Developing contract and work order specifications and scopes of work for site investigations and corrective actions; and• Interacting with the regulated community, contract staff, and the general public through verbal and written communication as well as public meetings.When the Remediation Division underwent a reorganization in 2009, I was transferred to the new Superfund Section, where I performed many of the same duties, albeit exclusively with State and Federal Superfund Sites.

Teaching assistant for Limnology course and research assistant for surface water chemistry work on the Blanco River, San Marcos River, Lake Dunlap, and Amistad Reservoir.

Master Of Science (M.S.), Aquatic Biology/Limnology

Bachelor Of Science (Bs), Biology, General

Bachelor'S Degree, German