Areas of Practice
Mr. Sergienko’s practice objective is to help business clients resolve environmental liabilities and to comply with environmental laws and regulations in a cost effective and sensible manner. His practice emphasizes all aspects of the state and federal superfund laws, environmental due diligence and the resolution and allocation of environmental liabilities in real estate, business, corporate, and loan transactions, brownfield redevelopment and other methods for remediating contaminated properties in the context of real estate, business and corporate transactions, Clean Water Act compliance, and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act compliance. In addition to his environmental practice, Mr. Sergienko has general experience in real estate transactions (purchases, sales, leasing, loans) and expertise in several niche areas of real estate law, including condominium development and condominium associations, developing, leasing and operating telecommunication and broadcast facilities, and condemnation.
Representative Clients and Experience
Advised MBK Partnership, Klamath Falls, Oregon in all phases of complex asbestos and asbestos-containing materials removal action. Negotiated consent orders with EPA, worked with and prepared experts to evaluate and communicate asbestos risks and technical findings to EPA and to the public in written reports and community meetings. Helped develop alternatives for purchasing, selling, and re-developing residential properties with asbestos and asbestos-containing materials.
Counsel for Cricket Communications, San Diego, California, in all phases of environmental due diligence and NEPA due diligence and compliance for building out wireless communications networks in Phoenix, Tucson, Denver, Salt Lake City, Provo, Albuquerque, Spokane, Eugene, Oregon, and a number of small cities in Northern and Central California.
Represented trust beneficiaries in evaluating superfund liability issues, procuring appropriate insurance in connection with potential property acquisition, and developing technical and legal comments to proposed investigation and remedial action plans prepared by Unocal for the Guadalupe Oil Field, California. Evaluated and prepared comments on Unocal remedial action plans, particularly emphasizing costs and efficacy of remedial alternatives. Worked with experts to evaluate potential impacts to special status species and to analyze ecological risk and ecological risk assessment issues.
Represented Portland metropolitan area auto dealership in connection with the remediation of several properties contaminated with hazardous substances. Negotiated transactions involving properties contaminated with hazardous substances with private parties and the DEQ, structuring liabilities through leases and options, and negotiating prospective purchaser agreements.
Counsel to Skyline Tower, LLC, owner and operator of broadcast tower facility in Portland, Oregon in all leasing, licensing and compliance matters.
Counsel to Belo Corp./KGW Northwest NewsChannel 8 in leasing matters related to its broadcasting operations, including leases, licenses, and antenna agreements at tower sites, skycam leases and licenses, access agreements, easements, and office building leases.
Counsel to Rural Oregon Wireless Television with respect to its broadcast facility leases, licenses, easements, and access agreements.
Counsel to tank truck washing facility, Portland, Oregon, in resolving alleged violations of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
Successfully defended Arrow Transportation against a citizen suit brought under the Clean Water Act and alleging violations of the company’s industrial wastewater disposal permit.
Counsel to landfill owner and operator in Portland metropolitan area in environmental permitting and compliance, including the development of alternative method of providing financial assurance for closure and post-closure costs associated with landfill operations.
Represented private landowner in Burns, Oregon with compliance and condemnation issues associated with operation of a publicly owned treatment works and disposal of treated wastewater on land adjacent to the treatment works.
Represented private developers of several small and mid-sized residential and mix-residential and commercial condominiums. Counsel to condominium associations in resolving association/unit owner disputes and completing bylaw amendments.
Memberships
Oregon State Bar (member Environmental and Natural Resource and Real Estate and Land Use Sections), American Bar Association (member Environmental and Natural Resource Section), Multnomah County Bar Association, Northwest Environmental Business Council.
Community Involvement, Leadership and Personal Information
Mr. Sergienko has a deep commitment to community service and has been an active community servant throughout his legal career. He is particularly interested in organizations that serve children, the environment, and the environmental industry.
From approximately 1990 to 2001, Mr. Sergienko served as a board member and officer of Friends of the Portland Children’s Museum and CM2—Children’s Museum Second Generation. Mr. Sergienko was a founding director of CM2 and served as pro bono counsel to CM2 in its corporate formation and obtaining tax exempt status.
Mr. Sergienko served as pro bono counsel to the Oregon Water Trust in connection with its initial activities. Mr. Sergienko created documents for the first-ever transactions in Oregon transferring consumptive water rights from private property owners into trust for the purpose of dedicating the rights to in-stream use to improve fish habitat.
From approximately 1995 to 2003, Mr. Sergienko served on the board of directors of the Oregon Environmental Technology Association (OETA) and then, upon its formation, OETA’s successor organization, the Northwest Environmental Business Council (NEBC). Mr. Sergienko served as counsel to the Executive Director and founding board of NEBC and as an officer and director of NEBC for many years, including serving as its President from 1999 to 2000.
From 2002 to 2004, Mr. Sergienko served as pro bono counsel and as an initial director of The Center for Environmentally Directed Group Education (the EDGE), a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization dedicated to providing group and experiential environmental education to youth.
Mr. Sergienko is an active member of St. Michael & All Angels Episcopal Church. He has served on numerous committees and was a member of the church vestry from 2003 through 2005, including service as Senior Warden in 2005.
Mr. Sergienko is a recreational distance runner and philanthropic road racer. He has raised thousands of dollars for charitable organizations such as Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, the Susan B. Komen Foundation, and El Porvenir through his participation in road races. Mr. Sergienko completed his first marathon in 2005.
Publications and Presentations
Co-author, "Determining acceptable risk calls for a delicate balance,” The Daily Journal of Commerce, March 23, 2006
Education
J.D., University of Oregon School of Law, 1988
B.A., cum laude, Harvard College, 1982
