Environmental Engineers are concerned with assessing and managing the effects of human and other activity on both the natural and the built environment. They are charged primarily with designing and planning prevention, control, and remediation of environmental health hazards. Environmental Engineers apply their knowledge of mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering problem-solving skills for the protection of human health and the environment. They design and maintain systems that provide safe drinking water, treat and properly dispose of wastes, maintain or improve air quality, control water pollution in rivers, lakes, and oceans, clean up contaminated land and water resources, and help industry minimize pollution.
Environmental Engineers research and develop new technologies and techniques to improve the environmental acceptability of engineering projects and evaluate the environmental and social impacts of engineering projects. They develop, administer, and implement environmental programs in accordance with governmental standards and monitor pollution prevention activities, compliance, and auditing efforts. Their duties may include collecting soil or groundwater samples and testing them for contamination, conducting hazardous-waste management studies in which they evaluate the significance of the hazard, advising on treatment and containment, and developing possible regulations to prevent mishaps. In addition, their fieldwork may include logging soil borings, groundwater sampling, monitoring of well installations, overseeing remediation system operations/maintenance, administering data collection, and examining the work of contractors.
Environmental Engineers design processes to treat commercial and industrial wastes to a standard acceptable for discharge and/or recycling. They conduct research on the environmental impact of proposed construction projects, plant processes, and permit changes, analyzing scientific data and performing quality-control inspections. They may be required to run, maintain, develop, and validate research on atmospheric dispersion models of the physical phenomena associated with the atmospheric transport of pollutants or hazardous chemicals. Environmental Engineers often work with occupational health experts to ensure hazard-free working environments in industrial, manufacturing, and energy producing/distributing settings.
They prepare reports/studies on the best approach to environmental management in new and existing engineering projects, taking into account government regulations and legal, environmental, and industrial factors. They may become involved in legal or financial consulting regarding environmental processes or issues, communicating information to other technical staff of businesses, managers, regulatory authorities, and public interest groups. Many Environmental Engineers work as consultants, helping their clients comply with regulations and cleanup of hazardous waste sites. One emphasis in environmental engineering consulting is on brownfields, land areas that are abandoned because of contamination by hazardous substances. Environmental Engineers help clients clean up the brownfields for reuse, minimizing the liabilities and the costs of building projects.
When working as consultants, they may interact with federal, state, and local regulators to resolve compliance issues, establish permit requirements, and assist Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), state, and local regulatory audits. They may represent their client companies in any government and industry rule-making activities. Most Environmental Engineers involved in the energy industry specialize in particular sectors, such as the minerals industry, the chemical industry, the nuclear power industry, the electric power industry, or civil engineering projects.
They may work for chemical companies, pharmaceutical companies, pulp and paper mills, nuclear plants, oil companies, or government agencies involved with energy conservation and energy usage, such as the EPA or the Department of Energy (DOE). Environmental engineering jobs with consulting companies often require significant travel of their engineers, sometimes including international journeys.
According to a 2005 survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the average annual starting salary for Environmental Engineers is US Dollars 47,384. In their annual analysis of salaries, the U.S. Department of Labor found that, in May 2004, the median annual earnings of Environmental Engineers ranged from a low of US Dollars 40,620 to a high of US Dollars 100,050.
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