Deborah Morefield | Senior Consultant

Ms. Morefield’s total Department of Defense (DoD) career spans 31 years.  Upon her departure from the DoD she was one of two Program Managers for the Defense Environmental Restoration Program (DERP) in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (Environment and Energy Resilience).  She oversaw active installations and complex programmatic cleanup issues, such as PFAS, conducted under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA).  As the DoD DERP program manager, she developed policy and guidance, set program performance goals to measure progress, and monitored the execution of the environmental restoration program by the DoD Components such as the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, and other agencies. The $1.3 billion DERP program restores contaminated properties and pursues restoration activities at DoD active installations, Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) installations, and Formerly Used Defense Sites (FUDS).

Ms. Morefield provided strong leadership to the DoD Components during the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Executive Order 12866/13563 interagency review on various Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) draft guidance documents and rulemakings such as: the addition of the subsurface (vapor intrusion) pathway to the Hazard Ranking Score (HRS) and draft Vapor Intrusion Guide. She developed working relationship with her counterparts in the Department of Energy, NASA, and other federal agencies to develop comments on common issues and concerns to provide a unified statement of concern and mission impacts.

She recently also led discussions with EPA to ensure that the cleanup policy or guidance developed as part of the EPA PFAS Action Plan or the Superfund Task Force did not cause an undue burden on DoD’s cleanup program. She led the interagency discussions to find pragmatic solutions that allow White House agencies, DoD, and EPA meet each agency’s cleanup goals and objectives.

During her tenure as a senior DERP program manager, Ms. Morefield ran the team creating the most significant revisions of the DERP management guidance in the program’s history. The changes aligned the Department’s environmental restoration activities with statutory requirements, increased transparency of cleanup efforts, and provided installation commanders greater flexibility and authority to consider mission requirements when sequencing cleanup work. Under her leadership, the DoD team worked with EPA and States to identify ways to efficiently and effectively move DoD cleanup program forward – through this open dialogue with the regulators DoD had more productive conversations on issues before they come to dispute.

Ms. Morefield also has extensive knowledge of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) regulations from managing the U. S. Marine Corps RCRA compliance program, where her responsibilities were to develop policy guidance and provide technical assistance for Marine Corps installations.  She was the Marine Corps representative on various interagency committees and work groups.  She has extensive knowledge of the RCRA underground storage tank regulations and the RCRA Subpart X (open burning/open detonation) permit process.

Ms, Morefield has participated in several special assignments.  In 1997, she was detailed to Office of the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense (Environmental Security) to provide CERCLA/RCRA technical support on the Native American Lands Environmental Mitigation Project.  From July to November 2005, she assisted the Military Liaison Officer in Senator Elizabeth Dole’s office.  Her responsibilities included researching military issues and coordinating with other Congressional offices.  She led discussions with interest groups, advocates, and professional trade organizations to determine their support or objections to potential proposed legislation.  Using this information, she would draft a “voting memo” for the Senator which provided a recommendation on how to vote.

Prior to joining the Office of the Secretary of Defense, she was the Range Sustainment and Technology Liaison in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Environment).  Her responsibilities included leading teams to develop policy, program oversight related to range sustainment and environmental compliance issues.

Throughout her career she has received numerous letters and certificates of appreciation for outstanding performance.  Her experience ranges from private consulting to Federal and State government positions both at the Headquarter and field level.

Ms. Morefield started her career in the United States Army.  After her enlistment, she attended the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (Environmental) degree.  She is a Certified Hazardous Materials Manger (CHMM).

Ms. Morefield was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA.  Even though she resides in the Alexandria area, she is still a Pittsburgh Steelers fan.  For relaxation, she enjoys walks with her dog, Snow Ghost, and spending time with her nieces and nephews.