What does an environmental project manager do?
The role of an environmental project manager is to provide support and guidance on how businesses can better protect the environment using their knowledge and expertise on environmental issues and legislation. As an environmental project manager, you will perform various tasks throughout your workday. These may include overseeing interaction and activities with environmental government agencies, managing permits, mitigation and compliance involving construction projects, and monitoring utility locators, drillers, or refinery workers. You will also be responsible for consulting with engineers, regulators, and scientists to plan projects.
Environmental project manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real environmental project manager resumes:
- Manage and coordinate the preparation and production of high-profile and complex environmental documents in compliance with CEQA and NEPA.
- Manage EPA representatives, consultants, and lawyers to change environmental law to protect the best interests of the base.
- Manage a staff of engineers and geologists providing environmental restoration support services at various CERCLA NPL and RCRA sites nationwide.
- Manage environmental restoration waste site characterization activities in support of CERCLA cleanup.
- Manage sewage treatment plant direct discharge monitoring, operation, reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
- Project manage the environmental testing component of numerous Superfund, RCRA and state-mandate site investigations.
- Provide employees and contractors training in the areas of waste management, RCRA, SWPPP, SPCC and minimization emergency response.
- Perform asbestos surveys, abatement specifications, abatement oversight, lead-base paint surveys for commercial and industrial facilities.
- Assist with the USACE permit applications and amendments.
- Gain survey experience, utilizing Trimble GPS hand-held unit.POSTGRADUATE EXPERIENCE
- Experience in molecular testing in a GMP laboratory setting.
- Assist locations in establishing and maintaining HSEMS for ISO / OHSAS certification.
- Experience with GIS mapping software to create maps of coastal and inland easements.
- Evaluate and implement remedial actions to remove volatile organic compounds from soil and groundwater.
- Maintain job specifications and monitor worker exposure require by OSHA and NIOSH regulations and standards.
Environmental project manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 11% of Environmental Project Managers are proficient in Project Management, Business Development, and Renewable Energy. They’re also known for soft skills such as Imagination, Reading skills, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Environmental Project Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Project Management, 11%
Served as technical and project management supervisor of junior personnel including field geologists performing subsurface exploration tasks.
- Business Development, 6%
Supported business development with proposal preparation, technical support, cost estimates, and negotiations.
- Renewable Energy, 6%
Company liason for renewable energy clients for Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota.
- Environmental Projects, 6%
Developed and implemented complex environmental projects while managing environmental reserves (approximately $50 million over 10 years).
- Environmental Compliance, 4%
Managed a variety of projects related to hazardous waste management, contamination assessments, site investigations, and environmental compliance.
- OSHA, 4%
Characterize, segregate, package and transport customer waste in accordance with all EPA, DOT and OSHA regulations.
Common skills that an environmental project manager uses to do their job include "project management," "business development," and "renewable energy." You can find details on the most important environmental project manager responsibilities below.
Imagination. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an environmental project manager to have is imagination. Their role and responsibilities require that "environmental engineers sometimes have to design systems that will be part of larger ones." Environmental project managers often use imagination in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "calculated the toxic air pollutant emissions inventory using unique, creative approaches not found in epa literature. "
Reading skills. Many environmental project manager duties rely on reading skills. "environmental engineers often work with businesspeople, lawyers, and other professionals outside their field," so an environmental project manager will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways environmental project manager responsibilities rely on reading skills: "provided project oversight for the us post office wastewater treatment plant in north reading, massachusetts. "
Writing skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of environmental project managers is writing skills. This skill is critical to many everyday environmental project manager duties, as "environmental engineers must write clearly so that others without their specific training can understand their documents, including plans, proposals, specifications, and findings, among others." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "performed threatened and endangered species surveys and section 7 consultation, which included technical report writing and presentation to public audiences. "
Problem-solving skills. A big part of what environmental project managers do relies on "problem-solving skills." You can see how essential it is to environmental project manager responsibilities because "when designing facilities and processes, environmental engineers strive to solve several issues at once, from workers’ safety to environmental protection." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical environmental project manager tasks: "directed air quality operations for large facility in texas and quickly responded and resolved compliance questions from plant operators. "
The three companies that hire the most environmental project managers are:
Choose from 10+ customizable environmental project manager resume templates
Build a professional environmental project manager resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your environmental project manager resume.
Compare different environmental project managers
Environmental project manager vs. Waste management specialist
A waste management specialist designs and manages waste reduction and reclamation projects. They work with government officials to ensure that waste management goes smoothly. They ensure the implementation of waste management and evaluate a waste management program's success. This position requires a university degree or a recognized training certificate.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an environmental project manager are more likely to require skills like "project management," "business development," "renewable energy," and "environmental projects." On the other hand, a job as a waste management specialist requires skills like "hazardous waste management," "waste disposal," "waste streams," and "radioactive waste." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Waste management specialists really shine in the energy industry with an average salary of $79,835. Comparatively, environmental project managers tend to make the most money in the technology industry with an average salary of $86,863.waste management specialists tend to reach lower levels of education than environmental project managers. In fact, waste management specialists are 9.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Environmental project manager vs. Solid waste engineer
An engineering coordinator organizes and oversees engineering projects. They typically perform administrative support tasks such as conducting extensive research and analysis, arranging schedules with clients, handling calls and correspondence, liaising with internal and external parties, reviewing contracts and other documentation, and managing the flow of documents and information across different teams. They may also participate in the planning, designing, and developing stages of projects. Moreover, as an engineering coordinator, it is essential to maintain an active communication line with different departments while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real environmental project manager resumes. While environmental project manager responsibilities can utilize skills like "project management," "business development," "renewable energy," and "environmental projects," solid waste engineers use skills like "landfill," "waste disposal," "engineering design," and "r."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Solid waste engineers tend to reach lower levels of education than environmental project managers. In fact, they're 9.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for environmental project managers in the next 3-5 years?
Andrea Welker Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, College of Engineering Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Villanova University
Environmental project manager vs. Waste management engineer
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from environmental project manager resumes include skills like "project management," "business development," "renewable energy," and "environmental projects," whereas a waste management engineer is more likely to list skills in "waste water," "safety regulations," "manage waste disposal," and "safety procedures. "
Most waste management engineers achieve a lower degree level compared to environmental project managers. For example, they're 10.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.8% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Environmental project manager vs. Engineering coordinator
Even though a few skill sets overlap between environmental project managers and engineering coordinators, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an environmental project manager might have more use for skills like "business development," "renewable energy," "environmental projects," and "environmental compliance." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of engineering coordinators require skills like "purchase orders," "continuous improvement," "digital marketing," and "data entry. "
In general, engineering coordinators earn the most working in the automotive industry, with an average salary of $62,970. The highest-paying industry for an environmental project manager is the technology industry.The average resume of engineering coordinators showed that they earn lower levels of education compared to environmental project managers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 6.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.6%.Types of environmental project manager
Updated January 8, 2025
