Environmental Engineers - 17-2081.00

Research, design, plan, or perform engineering duties in the prevention, control, and remediation of environmental hazards using various engineering disciplines. Work may include waste treatment, site remediation, or pollution control technology.

Sample of reported job titles: Air Pollution Control Engineer; Chief, Pesticides and Toxic Substances Branch; Environmental Analyst; Environmental Engineer; Environmental Remediation Specialist; Global Director Air and Climate Change; Hazardous Substances Engineer; Marine Engineer CPVEC (Marine Engineer Commercial Passenger Vessel Environmental Compliance); Regulatory Environmental Compliance Manager; Sanitary Engineer

Tasks

• Design, or supervise the design of, systems, processes, or equipment for control, management, or remediation of water, air, or soil quality.
• Advise corporations or government agencies of procedures to follow in cleaning up contaminated sites to protect people and the environment.
• Collaborate with environmental scientists, planners, hazardous waste technicians, engineers, experts in law or business, or other specialists to address environmental problems.
• Obtain, update, or maintain plans, permits, or standard operating procedures.
• Serve as liaison with federal, state, or local agencies or officials on issues pertaining to solid or hazardous waste program requirements.
• Provide technical support for environmental remediation or litigation projects, including remediation system design or determination of regulatory applicability.
• Prepare, review, or update environmental investigation or recommendation reports.
• Develop site-specific health and safety protocols, such as spill contingency plans or methods for loading or transporting waste.
• Inspect industrial or municipal facilities or programs to evaluate operational effectiveness or ensure compliance with environmental regulations.
• Provide assistance with planning, quality assurance, safety inspection protocols, or sampling as part of a team conducting multimedia inspections at complex facilities.
• Prepare or present public briefings on the status of environmental engineering projects.
• Develop proposed project objectives and targets and report to management on progress in attaining them.
• Coordinate or manage environmental protection programs or projects, assigning or evaluating work.
• Advise industries or government agencies about environmental policies and standards.
• Direct installation or operation of environmental monitoring devices or supervise related data collection programs.
• Monitor progress of environmental improvement programs.
• Prepare hazardous waste manifests or land disposal restriction notifications.
• Assess the existing or potential environmental impact of land use projects on air, water, or land.
• Prepare, maintain, or revise quality assurance documentation or procedures.
• Assist in budget implementation, forecasts, or administration.
• Provide environmental engineering assistance in network analysis, regulatory analysis, or planning or reviewing database development.
• Inform company employees or other interested parties of environmental issues.
• Develop or present environmental compliance training or orientation sessions.
• Provide administrative support for projects by collecting data, providing project documentation, training staff, or performing other general administrative duties.
• Assess, sort, characterize, or pack known or unknown materials.

Technology Skills

• Analytical or scientific software - DHI Water and Environment MIKE SHE; RockWare MODFLOW; The MathWorks MATLAB ; XP Software XPSWMM (see all 25 examples)
• Compliance software - Greenhouse gas management software; Hazardous materials management HMS software; Material safety data sheet MSDS software; Regulatory compliance management software (see all 6 examples)
• Computer aided design CAD software - Autodesk AutoCAD ; Bentley Microstation ; Computer aided design and drafting software CADD; SofTech CADRA (see all 5 examples)
• Data base user interface and query software - Microsoft Access
• Development environment software - Formula translation/translator FORTRAN
• Graphics or photo imaging software - Photogrammetric software
• Industrial control software - Fugitive emission leak detection software
• Map creation software - ESRI ArcGIS software ; ESRI ArcView; Geomechanical design analysis GDA software; Oil mapping software
• Object or component oriented development software - C++ ; Python
• Office suite software - Microsoft Office
• Presentation software - Microsoft PowerPoint
• Project management software - Microsoft Project
• Spreadsheet software - Microsoft Excel
• Word processing software - Microsoft Word

Tools Used

• Air samplers or collectors - Sampling trains
• Air sampling pumps - Sampling pumps
• Air velocity and temperature monitors - Air velocity meters; Ambient air measurement devices; Nitrogen oxide burners
• Anaerobic chamber - Anaerobic growth chambers
• Atomic absorption AA spectrometers - Atomic absorption AA spectrophotometers
• Atomizers - Mercury/hybrid atomizers
• Augers - Stem augers
• Autosamplers - Headspace autosamplers
• Bacteria transformation kits - Chemostats
• Bench refractometers or polarimeters - Interferometeric refractormeters
• Benchtop centrifuges - Centrifuges
• Chemical absorption gas analyzers - Surface area analyzers
• Chemiluminescence or bioluminescence analyzers - Fluorescence detectors; Microbics toxicity analyzers
• Chromatographic detectors - Liquid chromatography detectors; Ultraviolet UV light detectors
• Colorimeters
• Conductivity meters - Soil electrical conductivity measurement devices
• Core drills - Core drill rigs; Limnological coring drills
• Density gradient fractionators - Universal fractionators
• Desktop computers
• Dissolution or disintegration testers - Soil modulus failure testing devices; Soil-erodability testing devices
• Dissolved carbon dioxide analyzers - Respirometers
• Dissolved oxygen meters
• Electrometers - Electron capture detectors ECD
• Electronic counters - Particle counters
• Electronic measuring probes - Environmental probe systems; Individual burner air measurement IBAM probes
• Extracting equipment for laboratories - Supercritical fluid extractors
• Filtering machinery - Particulate filters
• Flame ionization analyzers - Flame emission detectors; Flame ionization detectors FID
• Flowmeters - Flow meters; Pitot tubes
• Fluorescent microscopes - Epifluorescence microscopes
• Forced air or mechanical convection general purpose incubators - Air incubators; Incubators
• Freeze dryers or lyopholizers - Freeze dryers
• Fume hoods or cupboards - Fume hoods
• Gas chromatographs - Gas chromatographs GC
• Gas detector tubes - Multi gas detector tubes; Sorbent tubes
• Gas detectors - Combustible gas meters
• Gas gauges - Gas meters
• Global positioning system GPS receiver - Global positioning system GPS receivers
• Instrumentation for capillary electrophoresis - Capillary electrophoresis systems
• Ion chromatographs
• Ionmeters - Argon ionization detectors
• Isolation glove boxes - Glove box systems
• Laboratory balances - Balances
• Laboratory mechanical convection ovens - Laboratory ovens
• Laboratory microwave ovens - Microwave digestion instruments
• Liquid scintillation counters
• Mass spectrometers - Plasma-mass spectrometers; Trace metal analyzers
• Mud pumps - Electric pumps
• Nitrogen or nitrate or nitrite analyzer - Soil carbon-nitrogen CN analyzers
• Notebook computers
• Open stream current meters - Hydrological current meters
• Open stream water level recorders - Water level recorders; Wave gauges
• Orbital shakers - Shakers
• Organic carbon analyzers - Total organic carbon TOC analyzers
• Ozone analyzers - Ozonators
• Penetrometers - California bearing ratio CBR testing devices
• Permeability testing apparatus - Consolidometers
• pH meters
• Photo attachments for microscopes - Charge-coupled device CCD cameras
• Photometers - Laser photometers; Luminometers
• Potentiometers - Scanning potentiostats
• Programmable tube furnaces - Graphite furnaces
• Rotary drills - Mud rotary drills
• Sample holders - Whole air canisters
• Sample oxidizer - Biological oxidizers; Thermal/catalytic oxidizers TCO
• Seismic recorders or seismographs - Seismographs
• Shear strength testers - Direct shear testing devices; Solid shear failure testing devices
• Soil core sampling apparatus - Geoprobes; Limnological core loggers
• Spectrophotometers - Fluorescence spectrophotometers
• Steam autoclaves or sterilizers - Autoclaves
• Thermal conductivity analyzers - Thermal conductivity detectors
• Thermocouples
• Titration equipment - Automatic titrators
• Ultra violet water purification units - Ultraviolet water purification systems
• Vacuum or centrifugal concentrators - Sample concentrators
• Vacuum pumps - Liquid ring pumps
• Water analyzers - Multiparameter water quality instruments; Nutrient analyzers
• Water samplers - Stormwater samplers

Knowledge

• Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub- atomic structures and processes.
• Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Skills

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
• Mathematics - Using mathematics to solve problems.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
• Science - Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Negotiation - Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
• Systems Evaluation - Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
• Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Systems Analysis - Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
• Management of Personnel Resources - Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.

Abilities

• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
• Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Mathematical Reasoning - The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
• Number Facility - The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
• Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
• Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
• Flexibility of Closure - The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
• Visualization - The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
• Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
• Memorization - The ability to remember information such as words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.
• Perceptual Speed - The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
• Selective Attention - The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
• Speed of Closure - The ability to quickly make sense of, combine, and organize information into meaningful patterns.

Interests

• Interest code: IRC
  • Investigative - Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
  • Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
  • Conventional - Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Work Context

• Electronic Mail - 100% responded “Every day.”
• Telephone - 89% responded “Every day.”
• Face-to-Face Discussions - 85% responded “Every day.”
• Work With Work Group or Team - 63% responded “Extremely important.”
• Duration of Typical Work Week - 74% responded “More than 40 hours.”
• Contact With Others - 48% responded “Contact with others most of the time.”
• Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - 44% responded “Extremely important.”
• Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - 56% responded “Every day.”
• Letters and Memos - 44% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
• Freedom to Make Decisions - 56% responded “Some freedom.”
• Structured versus Unstructured Work - 52% responded “Some freedom.”
• Responsible for Others' Health and Safety - 37% responded “Very high responsibility.”
• Coordinate or Lead Others - 56% responded “Very important.”
• Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - 52% responded “Important results.”
• Deal With External Customers - 37% responded “Very important.”
• Time Pressure - 67% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
• Level of Competition - 54% responded “Highly competitive.”
• Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - 48% responded “Moderate responsibility.”
• Spend Time Sitting - 52% responded “More than half the time.”
• Frequency of Decision Making - 30% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
• In an Enclosed Vehicle or Equipment - 46% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
• Outdoors, Exposed to Weather - 42% responded “Once a month or more but not every week.”
• Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets - 33% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
• Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled - 56% responded “Once a month or more but not every week.”
• Frequency of Conflict Situations - 48% responded “Once a month or more but not every week.”

Education

Percentage of Respondents	Education Level Required
48%	Master's degree
41%	Bachelor's degree
7%	Post-baccalaureate certificate

Work Styles

• Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
• Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
• Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
• Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
• Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
• Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
• Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
• Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
• Self Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
• Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
• Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
• Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
• Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
• Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
• Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
• Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.

Work Values

• Achievement - Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
• Working Conditions - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
• Recognition - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.

Wages & Trends

• Median wages (2017)
  • $41.73 hourly, $86,800 annual
• Employment (2016)
  • 54,000 employees
• Projected growth (2016-2026)
  • Average (5% to 9%)
• Projected job openings (2016-2026)
  • 4,000