Environmental consultant

You’d evaluate the environmental impact of new developments or industries, providing technical advice and assessments for your clients.

You might advise on any issue including:

• Renewable energy

• Flood risk

• Waste and recycling

• Carbon emissions

• Climate change and emission management.

You’d need to keep up to date with environmental legislation.

Depending on the project, you could:

• See if sites are suitable for new developments like power stations or wind farms

• Work out the environmental risk from industries like energy or chemical production

• Assess business practices to make sure organisations are meeting environmental laws and regulations

• Collect data in field studies on sites or in buildings

• Investigate contamination and report organisations who break environmental rules

• Respond to environmental accidents and manage cleanup operations

• Advise industry, organisations or the government on issues such as the disposal of waste

You would:

• Analyse and interpret the data gathered in field surveys

• Write scientific reports

• Present your findings and ideas

You might explain to businesses how to meet rules and regulations. You could help them reduce their impact on the environment by changing to ‘greener’ processes and practices. For example, you may work with a chemical company to limit the levels of pollutants it releases into the air.

You’d need to have a good understanding of business practices so you can work with organisations in a competitive commercial world.

• Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management - training courses

• Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment

• GreenJobs - Find environmental job vacancies