How To Become An Environmental Coordinator: What It Is and Career Path

What is an environmental coordinator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted experts

Catherine Etter Ph.D.,

Karl Offen Ph.D.

Environmental coordinators work with the government on policies that can affect the environment. They conduct research, promote, and enforce environmental policies. As an environmental coordinator, you can work in various settings, including private and government-owned organizations.

In private employment, an environmental coordinator may be responsible for keeping the company practices up to date. This includes analyzing activities, recommending actions, and even labeling materials according to their nature. Some other responsibilities include assisting in designing environmental project plans and training staff.

In many instances, environmental coordinators are the shields protecting an organization from sanctions on environmental pollution. Thus, they have to be up to date on the relevant policies and laws in their state of operation.

To become an environmental coordinator, you need a bachelor's degree in environmental research, environmental protection, or other related fields. You'll also need several years of experience.

What general advice would you give to an environmental coordinator?

Catherine Etter Ph.D.

Professor of environmental science/technology, Cape Code Community College

Networking is probably the best strategy to find out about the different types of jobs, such as town water and wastewater labs, biomedical, and research centers.

ScoreEnvironmental CoordinatorUS Average

Salary

4.8

Avg. Salary $61,529

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.5

Growth rate 4%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.44%

Asian 10.14%

Black or African American 3.89%

Hispanic or Latino 10.78%

Unknown 3.85%

White 70.90%

Gender

female 34.18%

male 65.82%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

6.5

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.6

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an environmental coordinator

Explore environmental coordinator education requirements

Most common environmental coordinator degrees

Bachelor's

69.3 %

Associate

13.7 %

Master's

10.8 %

Start to develop specific environmental coordinator skills

Skills	Percentages
Environmental Compliance	9.31%
OSHA	5.59%
Environmental Regulations	4.35%
Regulatory Agencies	4.12%
Hazardous Waste	4.12%

Complete relevant environmental coordinator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New environmental coordinators learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an environmental coordinator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real environmental coordinator resumes.

Research environmental coordinator duties and responsibilities

Manage water logistics program, SPCC program and NPDES permits, DMR's.
Manage the participation in OSHA inspections, providing inspectors with appropriate documents and identifying safety measures.
Provide necessary training for SPCC, RCRA, and SWPPP on an annual basis.
Maintain compliance with all RCRA regulations and programs.

Prepare your environmental coordinator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your environmental coordinator resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an environmental coordinator resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable environmental coordinator resume templates

Build a professional environmental coordinator resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your environmental coordinator resume.