Drew Ernst, a partner in the Firm’s Savannah office, has practiced for over thirty years in the areas of environmental law, land use, commercial real estate development, and industrial development. He has extensive experience in representing clients on wetland issues and coastal development matters arising under various facets of Georgia’s Marshlands Protection Act and Shore Protection Act. He also represents clients before regulatory agencies in obtaining permits under the Clean Water Act. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America for environmental law since 1997 and in Chambers USA since 2004, and in 2009 he was elected into membership in the American College of Environmental Lawyers.

On behalf of an economic development authority, Drew was instrumental in the creation of a unique Section 404 Permit for a 1,800 acre industrial park. The pre-permitting of the entire development effectively reconciled environmental concerns and economic development before the final uses of the park were identified. Lt. General Henry Hatch, then Chief of Engineers and Commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, personally issued the permit in Washington, D.C. This permitting concept has become the basis for most large industrial parks developed since the early 1990s.

Drew has authored numerous articles on environmental and real estate issues, including “Responding to the Challenge of the 404 Permit,” published in the Economic Development Review. He also co-authored “Water Water Everywhere, Better Call the Corps: Section 404 Regulation of Wetlands,” which appeared in Mercer Law Review 41, no. 3. Drew has also been a frequent speaker on environmental and real estate topics at seminars sponsored by different organizations, including the Georgia Continuing Legal Education Institute, the American Economic Development Council, Executive Enterprises, the Seminar Group, and the Environment, Energy, and Resources Section of the American Bar Association. He has co-chaired the Southeast and Georgia Wetlands and Water Law program presented annually in Atlanta since 2001. Drew’s last presentation in February 2011 was entitled “In Search of Mitigation: Savannah Harbor Deepening Project.”

HunterMaclean

From offices in Savannah and St. Simons Island, HunterMaclean represents a wide variety of companies and individuals in the Southeast and throughout the United States in their legal and business matters in Georgia. HunterMaclean is a law firm that is committed to its clients and connected to the communities in which its clients do business.

The Firm has extensive experience representing businesses and individuals in all areas of litigation, and in corporate, tax, real estate, and business planning matters. Its clients include Fortune 500 manufacturing companies, banks and hospitals, professional service organizations, and nonprofit corporations.

With attorneys operating from two offices, HunterMaclean offers one comprehensive source to handle the full range of each client’s legal needs. The Firm represents a wide variety of industries including construction companies, hotel and hospitality partners, health care groups, and financial institutions and provides those industries with legal services that cater to their fields.