Environmental Question #14 [Environmental Careers]

Courtesy of Reddit user u/cheerful_altruist

Q:  I have a similar background, so my first and off-topic question would be whether you have any tips on finding a job within environmental chemistry. In my country, at least, there don't seem to be many opportunities outside academia.

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A:  That depends on what your specialty and goals are, but depending on how picky you are, there are a decent number of options out there. The areas with the most jobs for environmental chemists surround efforts to prevent and mitigate pollution.

Environmental Safety Officer:

In most countries it is required for any company that handles chemicals to have a dedicated safety officer on site whose job is to ensure that chemicals are handled and disposed of safely. Some companies also hire outside chemical safety consultants who handle that stuff for them, so you can seek to be hired directly by a company or by a consulting firm.

Water Quality Chemist:

If you want to do more hands-on chemistry than that, there are usually also jobs available in government water treatment facilities, since they are constantly testing both drinking water and waste water for contaminants, which requires lots of chemists.

Environmental Remediation/Hazmat Teams:

When safety systems fail, environmental chemists are also needed to assess the damage and clean up the pollution. Environmental remediation companies focus on restoring land or water that has previously been polluted, and Hazmat (hazardous materials) teams focus on cleaning up spills while they are in progress. You can think of Hazmat teams as like firefighters for chemical emergencies. Think of any oil spill you've heard about in the news, both environmental remediation and hazmat teams are desperately needed in times like that and are made up almost entirely of environmental chemists.

R&D and Alternate Specializations:

R&D jobs in environmental chemistry do exist, but they are much harder to find, which is why most R&D is done in academia. Beyond the options I've mentioned already though, you can potentially benefit from cross-training in a non-chemistry field to open up additional opportunities. A second degree in law or policy could allow you to help write environmental safety regulations for the government. A degree in some kind of electronics could allow you to work at an equipment company that makes testing equipment for pollution. A degree in civil engineering or geotechnical engineering could help you design buildings meant to contain chemical pollutants. There's a whole world of options for you, depending on what you're interested in doing. 

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