WHAT DOES AN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENTIST DO?
Published: Feb 18, 2025 – The Environmental Scientist supports environmental operations, construction, and maintenance ensuring compliance with regulations, and minimizing impacts on land, water, and air. Management of contaminated sites involves assessments, remediation planning, and monitoring to address historical contamination effectively. Data analysis, reporting, and supervision of regional environmental programs contribute to regulatory compliance and sustainable practices.
A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Environmental Scientist
1. Environmental Scientist Role Purpose
- Data Collection and Utilization: Gather, assemble, and utilize raw data for the development of deliverables for review.
- Data Analysis: Perform calculations and analyses necessary to complete assigned tasks.
- Data Review and Presentation: Provide a comprehensive review of the data and present it in a concise form that meets the project objectives.
- Research and Documentation: Conduct investigations, gather data, and prepare supporting documentation of assigned tasks for studies and reports.
- Interdisciplinary Support: Provide support services to other groups where the experiences and backgrounds of an environmental scientist will aid the engineering staff and enhance the quality of work.
- Data Visualization: Prepare any charts, tables, or figures that will aid in the comprehension of a narrative report.
- Quality Assurance: Provide quality work within the scope and guidelines defined by the Project Scientist or Group Manager.
- Regulatory Compliance: Take responsibility for the preparation of regulatory reports and documents.
- Government Liaison: Interact with federal, state, and local government agencies.
2. Environmental Scientist General Responsibilities
- Environmental Permitting: Prepare and file environmental permit applications and provide technical support for regulatory approvals associated with energy and real estate projects.
- Regulatory Compliance: Work in a multi-disciplined team of engineers, scientists, planners, and other technical professionals in assembling regulatory-compliant environmental plans and studies.
- Environmental Assessments: Perform wetland delineations, habitat assessments, vegetation surveys, and site remediation tasks.
- Inspection and Compliance: Perform construction-phase erosion and sediment control inspections and permit condition compliance inspections.
- Environmental Planning: Prepare EAF, Expanded EA, and EIS environmental planning documentation according to the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA).
- Site Assessments: Prepare phase 1’s and phase 2’s.
- Field Oversight: Conduct field inspection and oversight of projects.
- Client Relations: Assist with client maintenance and new project development.
- Business Development: Involvement in proposal preparation and business development with key clients.
- Regulatory Liaison: Interface with environmental regulatory agencies and local government officials.
- Public Engagement: Assist with and possibly attend and participate in public meetings and hearings.
3. Environmental Scientist Key Accountabilities
- Environmental Compliance: Support compliance work and auditing for multimedia environmental compliance areas.
- Field Observation: Provide field observation of project activities to confirm that the approach is being followed properly.
- Project Tracking: Provide field observations including tracking project activities (i.e., cleaning, dismantlement, final disposition) of individual pieces of equipment in dedicated work areas.
- Data Tracking: Provide tracking data for the Project Manager (Engineer of Record) closure report.
- Client Coordination: Coordinate and interface with the on-site Client team (i.e., general contractor, contractor, subcontractor) related to project health and safety, decommissioning, and dismantlement.
- Sampling and Documentation: Collect samples and maintain documentation in record logs.
- Data Analysis: Review and analyze data collected in environmental sampling programs.
- Instrumentation and Calibration: Test, calibrate, repair, and modify control and instrumentation systems at on-site locations under general supervision.
- Scientific Application: Perform a variety of field and office tasks requiring the application of standard scientific principles and fundamental theories.
- Field Leadership: Lead field teams by planning, organizing, and directing the work in the field under the supervision of the Project Manager.
- Technical Guidance: Provide technical guidance to lower-level Scientists and Technicians.
- Field Documentation: Complete field documentation and forms (electronic and/or paper logs).
4. Environmental Scientist Essential Functions
- Field Data Collection: Develop and participate in field programs to collect project-related data.
- Data Interpretation: Interpret field, laboratory, and toxicological datasets, perform statistical analysis, and prepare written and graphical material for reports and presentations.
- Proposal Preparation: Take responsibility for the preparation of proposals.
- Risk Assessment: Perform detailed human health and/or ecological risk assessments.
- Task Management: Oversee planning, scheduling, resourcing, reporting, and cost/scope tracking to ensure deliverables are provided on time and within budget.
- Project Management: Be responsible for managing small projects.
- Technical Support: Support other teams by providing technical knowledge in areas of expertise and work to grow client relationships in collaboration with others.
- Team Collaboration: Work closely with a diverse and highly skilled team to leverage their experience and mentorship.
- Bid Development: Play an integral role in the preparation of proposals and bids for projects.
- Environmental Sampling: Work as a member of active teams conducting hands-on multi-media environmental sampling, including surface and subsurface soil, overburden, and bedrock groundwater.
- Field Data Management: Record field data accurately and compile data into coherent products for transmittal to data management for upload into centralized databases, as well as to other staff and client groups.
- Data Compilation and Mapping: Compile data from various database programs for publication and for mapping through Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Computer-Aided Design (CAD).
5. Environmental Scientist Additional Details
- Scientific Analysis and Writing: Provide input into reports and proposals through scientific analysis and writing to a standard commensurate with GHD standards.
- Team Collaboration: Collaborate and work in a team that includes a range of environmental practitioners including chemists, geologists, hydrogeologists, air quality scientists, acoustics specialists, coastal geomorphologists, and environmental planners.
- Environmental Project Participation: Participate in environmental projects related to land use and development and work with GHD’s transport, water, and urban design teams on infrastructure projects.
- Client and Regulator Liaison: Liaise with clients, regulators, and contractors under the direction and support of senior staff members.
- Environmental Approvals: Seek and obtain environmental and planning approvals.
- Impact Assessments and Compliance: Conduct environmental impact assessments, inspections, stakeholder management, asset management plans, approvals, and project and maintenance activities.
- Environmental Management: Develop environmental management plans, procedures, and training for activities in liaison with stakeholders to meet compliance requirements and provide continual improvement.
- Report Review and Development: Review scientific and technical reports and develop briefs and submissions for management and stakeholders.
- Contaminated Land Assessment: Assist with preparing a range of contaminated land-related deliverables, including impact assessments, interpretive reports, and environmental management plans.
- Project Scope Coordination: Liaise with the design team concerning the scope of project works and actively assist in the development of client relationships by providing “advice that matters.”
- Client Meetings and Presentations: Attend and present at client meetings.
- Field Oversight: Provide oversight of field activities to ensure the proposed scope is being undertaken.
6. Environmental Scientist Overview
- Environmental Support: Support the environmental aspects of operations, construction, and maintenance activities.
- Mitigation Planning: Develop and implement plans to mitigate and/or minimize the environmental effects of undertakings across NSPI, with particular emphasis on solids (coal, ash) management and discharges to land, water, and air from NSPI assets and facilities.
- Incident Response: Provide immediate guidance, leadership, and support for unexpected releases from NSPI assets/equipment.
- Environmental Monitoring: Support environmental monitoring, studies, remediation, and compliance programs related to historical contamination at NSPI facilities.
- Contaminated Site Management: Support the management of contaminated sites through the completion and/or management of Phase 1 and 2 Environmental Site Assessments and/or the development and initiation of remedial action plans.
- Contractor Oversight: Review and approve contractor/consultant Health and Safety Plans and assist with site supervision and auditing of contractor services to ensure compliance.
- Regulatory Reporting: Analyze data and prepare reports for regulatory departments/agencies in support of contaminated sites programs and activities across NSPI.
- Water Quality Review: Review groundwater and surface water consultant reports associated with NSPI thermal generating facilities.
- Team Supervision: Supervise Regional Environmental Scientists supporting the implementation of environmental programs across the four regions of the province.
- Leadership and Relationship Management: As the team lead, foster strong working relationships with NSPI business leaders.
7. Environmental Scientist Job Description
- Air Permit Compliance: Draft and submit air permit compliance documentation.
- Technical Analysis: Perform technical analysis in calculations and research to support proof of concept, carbon footprint analysis, air emission analysis, and drawing and specification review.
- Air Emissions Reporting: Draft and submit the Annual Air Emissions statement.
- Hazardous Waste Management: Ensure regulatory compliance for solid waste, hazardous waste, and recycling.
- Petroleum Storage Compliance: Ensure regulatory compliance for aboveground and underground storage tanks (ASTs and USTs).
- ODS Program Management: Manage the ozone-depleting substances (ODS) program.
- Field Inspection Reporting: Provide appropriate reports for all field inspections.
- Environmental Data Management: Collect, analyze, and report data to ensure facilities remain in compliance with environmental compliance requirements.
- Regulatory Compliance: Follow Federal and state (PA preferred) environmental laws and regulations, including CWA, CAA, SDWA, RCRA, EPCRA, CERCLA, and TSCA.
- Environmental Coordination: Coordinate with individuals and organizations outside of the program to ensure environmental compliance requirements are met across facilities’ operations and construction projects.
- Environmental Plan Writing: Develop plans such as SWPPP, SPCC Plan, TMP, and Virginia ODCP.
- Compliance Program Management: Identify and implement environmental compliance program priorities.
- Water Discharge Compliance: Ensure compliance with water discharge permits (NPDES and pre-treatment) and stormwater management (particularly MS4 permitting and compliance).
- Technical Communication: Develop technical briefings, reports, and memos to communicate program requirements and the effectiveness of environmental initiatives.
- Environmental Training: Create and provide training for various environmental compliance requirements as needed by the client.