Brent Fewell has been appointed as the principal deputy assistant administrator in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water. As the deputy to Assistant Administrator for Water Benjamin Grumbles, Fewell is responsible for advising in the development and implementation of critical agency decisions related to national water policy.

"Brent Fewell brings a tremendous set of skills, insights and balanced judgment to the national water program," Grumbles says. "With more than 15 years of environmental, legal, technical and policy experience, Brent will be a great asset to my office and to the agency."

A native of Greensboro, N.C., Fewell joined the EPA in September 2004 from the Pittsburgh office of the international law firm Jones Day. He held that position for six years and counseled clients on a wide array of environmental matters, including environmental litigation, regulatory compliance, transactional liabilities, water quality and the cleanup of contaminated properties.

Fewell, 39, previously served as an environmental scientist with several consulting firms, where he advised clients on human health and ecological risk assessments, environmental permitting, compliance auditing and impact analyses. Fewell earlier focused on wetlands and endangered species during service with the National Wildlife Federation and North Carolina Wildlife Federation. He also worked for the National Park Service at Yellowstone National Park.

Fewell graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Management from the University of Maine in 1988. He earned a Master of Environmental Management from Duke University in 1991, and a Juris Doctorate from Duquesne University in 1998, where he served on the law-review staff.