Kenneth F. Whittaker, Ph.D., concentrates his Environmental practice in compliance assistance, contaminated property assessment, cost recovery in state and federal environmental contamination claims and remediation/redevelopment defense in state and federal enforcement proceedings and environmental/real estate permitting. Dr. Whittaker holds a doctorate in civil/environmental engineering, and in addition to his 13 years of legal practice, he has extensive technical experience as a senior engineer, program manager, remedial technology specialist, and expert witness with several national environmental consulting firms.

Dr. Whittaker has provided legal and technical assistance related to federal environmental statutes, such as the Clean Air Act, CERCLA, RCRA and the Oil Pollution Act, as well as the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection, Environmental Policy, Coastal Zone Management, and Clean Air Acts. He has advised industrial and commercial clients on the limitation of environmental liabilities associated with property acquisitions and divestitures; commercial leasing agreements; real property and Brownfields development; acquisition of environmental insurance and the availability of related state subsidies; multi-state and municipal solid waste handling facility permitting and operational compliance; defense against Superfund-based remediation and Natural Reservoir Damage claims by federal entities; response cost reimbursement under state law; and site institutional controls development. He is Director of Government Affairs at the Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions and a recognized expert in wetlands permitting and enforcement defense.

Dr. Whittaker has multiple publications in legal and technical/engineering journals, periodicals, and book chapters on a variety of topics, including landfill design and closure standards, industrial and hazardous waste water treatment, groundwater remediation, greenhouse gas emissions control and related clean energy matters, environmental litigation, and insurance recovery and state administrative law practice with particular attention to wetlands-based permitting and enforcement.

Active in professional and civic organizations, Dr. Whittaker has served as a member of the Boston Bar Association (Co-chair, Hazardous and Solid Waste Committee; Environmental Law Steering Committee); American Bar Association (Section on Environment, Energy, and Resources; Vice Chair, Site Remediation Committee; and Environmental Transaction and Brownfields Committee); Board of Directors, Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions(Chair, Government Affairs Committee); and Hamilton Wenham Open Land Trust; Zoning Ordinance Development and Affordable Housing Committee (Wenham, MA); Chair, MCLE Program “Massachusetts Environmental Law”; and Massachusetts Licensed Site Professional Association (Regulatory Affairs Committee).

Dr. Whittaker earned his J.D., magna cum laude, at Syracuse University College of Law, where he was also named to the Justinian Law Society and the Order of the Coif; a Ph.D. in Civil/Environmental Engineering at Purdue University; an M.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Florida; and a B.A. in Chemistry, cum laude, at the University of Vermont. He is admitted to practice in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and the U.S. District Courts in both Massachusetts and New Hampshire. ENVIRONMENTAL LAW