What does an environmental supervisor do?
The environmental supervisor works with management to ensure that all policies, processes, and activities of the company adhere to the local environmental policies and regulations. This position is commonly seen in companies that directly affect the environment, such as energy, aerospace, mining, lumber, and chemical manufacturers. The environmental supervisor helps the company create environment-friendly policies, provide reports on problematic areas in the company, and provide suggestions for upgrades and improvements.
Environmental supervisor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real environmental supervisor resumes:
- Manage the safety and health programs for glassware manufacturing including emergency medical team, OSHA compliance, and H1N1 initiatives.
- Manage and conduct various environmental engineering projects at DOD facilities.
- Develop and implement programs and procedures to ensure compliance with EPA, state, and local environmental regulations.
- DOT RCRA certify hazardous waste train as generator
- Conduct sampling and maintain records for surface water discharge permits issue by Ohio EPA.
- Consult on OSHA process safety hazardous operations reviews
- Provide environmental engineering management oversight for tactical paramilitary infrastructure projects.
- Develop bid packages to remove asbestos, PCB transformers, lead and chromium paint on all steel prior to its removal.
- Provide environmental engineering management oversight for tactical paramilitary infrastructure projects.
Environmental supervisor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 8% of Environmental Supervisors are proficient in Industrial Cleaning, Environmental Services, and OSHA. They’re also known for soft skills such as Imagination, Reading skills, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Environmental Supervisors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Industrial Cleaning, 8%
Cleaned and buffed tile floors using industrial cleaning equipment.
- Environmental Services, 7%
Coordinated and facilitated work projects for Environmental Services.
- OSHA, 7%
Consulted on OSHA process safety hazardous operations reviews
- Emergency Response, 5%
Managed site security and emergency response program including HazMat and Incident Command teams.
- Safety Procedures, 5%
Conducted monthly and quarterly safety inspections of the office and field environment in accordance to Chem-Nuclear company safety procedures.
- Safety Training, 4%
Developed a safety training program for operators of powered industrial equipment.
Most environmental supervisors use their skills in "industrial cleaning," "environmental services," and "osha" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential environmental supervisor responsibilities here:
Imagination. One of the key soft skills for an environmental supervisor to have is imagination. You can see how this relates to what environmental supervisors do because "environmental engineers sometimes have to design systems that will be part of larger ones." Additionally, an environmental supervisor resume shows how environmental supervisors use imagination: "facilitated rescue equipment and hazmat inventory as well as maintenance on equipment. "
Reading skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling environmental supervisor duties is reading skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "environmental engineers often work with businesspeople, lawyers, and other professionals outside their field." According to an environmental supervisor resume, here's how environmental supervisors can utilize reading skills in their job responsibilities: "led project to obtain permit for land spreading of waste water treatment plant sludge. "
Writing skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of environmental supervisors is writing skills. This skill is critical to many everyday environmental supervisor 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: "lead environmental efforts of iso certification, including writing policies, planning for scheduling and completing 3rd party audits. "
Problem-solving skills. Another skill commonly found on environmental supervisor job descriptions is "problem-solving skills." It can come up quite often in environmental supervisor duties, since "when designing facilities and processes, environmental engineers strive to solve several issues at once, from workers’ safety to environmental protection." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day environmental supervisor responsibilities: "investigated complaints regarding our department's cleaning efforts and took corrective actions to ensure that these issues were resolved. "
The three companies that hire the most environmental supervisors are:
- HEPACO9 environmental supervisors jobs
- Savage8 environmental supervisors jobs
- ATI - Allegheny Technologies Incorporated5 environmental supervisors jobs
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Compare different environmental supervisors
Environmental supervisor vs. Safety coordinator
A safety coordinator is responsible for monitoring and evaluating daily operations and planning procedures to mitigate risks and improve safety regulations. Safety coordinators inspect building premises, individual workstations, as well as common areas to ensure that the arrangements are compliant with federal and state law safety protocols. They also conduct safety training and orientations to promote safety codes for each employee's practice. A safety coordinator also assesses the company's equipment and machinery to ensure its safety for everyone's use.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, environmental supervisor responsibilities require skills like "environmental services," "industrial maintenance," "emergency response," and "cleanliness." Meanwhile a typical safety coordinator has skills in areas such as "safety audits," "safety regulations," "safety standards," and "cpr." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Safety coordinators really shine in the energy industry with an average salary of $76,024. Comparatively, environmental supervisors tend to make the most money in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $73,112.The education levels that safety coordinators earn slightly differ from environmental supervisors. In particular, safety coordinators are 1.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an environmental supervisor. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Environmental supervisor vs. Site safety manager
A site safety manager oversees the safety of the area for the workforce. Safety managers enforce compliance with government and industry regulations. They review the safety and health standards to lessen injuries. Their duties include the provision of a great safety benefit for the workers in the area and the whole company. It is also their job to establish policies to create and maintain workplace safety.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, environmental supervisor responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "industrial cleaning," "environmental services," "industrial maintenance," and "federal regulations." Meanwhile, a site safety manager has duties that require skills in areas such as "construction sites," "safety regulations," "safety inspections," and "safety culture." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Site safety managers earn similar levels of education than environmental supervisors in general. They're 1.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for environmental supervisors 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 supervisor vs. Health and safety manager
Health and Safety Managers oversee the company's compliance with occupational health and safety guidelines set by both governing bodies and company policies. They create company policies based on guidelines released by regulatory bodies. They also ensure that everyone follows these policies in the office. Health and safety managers are in charge of inspecting the workplace and ensuring no health hazards in the area. They are also in charge of signing off on materials and equipment used in the office to ensure that they are safe to use. Health and Safety Managers train health and safety officers to ensure that the same standard is applied to the department.
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 supervisor resumes include skills like "industrial cleaning," "environmental services," "industrial maintenance," and "osha," whereas a health and safety manager is more likely to list skills in "continuous improvement," "safety audits," "safety regulations," and "safety standards. "
Health and safety managers make a very good living in the energy industry with an average annual salary of $96,840. On the other hand, environmental supervisors are paid the highest salary in the manufacturing industry, with average annual pay of $73,112.health and safety managers typically earn higher educational levels compared to environmental supervisors. Specifically, they're 6.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Environmental supervisor vs. Ehs manager
An environmental health & safety (EHS) manager is in charge of developing and implementing safety programs for a company's workforce and work environment. Their responsibilities revolve around conducting regular inspections to ensure compliance with safety and environmental regulations, devising preventive measures, spearheading training and seminars, and investigating workplace accidents and identify causes to ensure that it would not happen again. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the team to reach goals, all while implementing every policy and safety regulation of the company.
Types of environmental supervisor
Updated January 8, 2025
