All careersEngineering & science

Environmental Engineer

$107,110
median / year
$69,990 – $162,220
what most earn per year (10th–90th percentile)

What the job actually is

Design systems and solutions to clean up pollution, manage waste, and protect air and water.

You may also see this posted as: Engineer, Environmental Remediation Specialist, Sanitary Engineer, Air Pollution Control Engineer, Engineering Consultant, Environmental Analyst.

Where you work

Offices, plus field and site visits.

The hours

Full-time, with some field travel

The day to day

What you'd actually spend time doing

  • Design, or supervise the design of, systems, processes, or equipment for control, management, or remediation of water, air, or soil quality.
  • Assess the existing or potential environmental impact of land use projects on air, water, or land.
  • Collaborate with environmental scientists, planners, hazardous waste technicians, engineers, experts in law or business, or other specialists to address environmental problems.
  • Advise corporations or government agencies of procedures to follow in cleaning up contaminated sites to protect people and the environment.
  • Develop proposed project objectives and targets and report to management on progress in attaining them.

Good fit if you like…

Investigative

solving problems, analyzing evidence, and figuring out how things work

Realistic

working with tools, equipment, materials, or the physical world

Conventional

organizing information, following systems, and getting details right

O*NET job zone 4 of 5

High preparation—usually a four-year degree plus experience—is common.

Work styles that matter most

Attention to DetailDependabilityCautiousnessInnovation

Software that shows up in the work

Examples employers report—not a checklist you must already know.

Autodesk AutoCADMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft WordAutodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D

By the numbers

May 2025 BLS wage & employment data · 2024–34 BLS employment projections.

Median pay
$107,110
per year
Hourly median
$51.50
per hour
What most earn
$69,990–$162,220
yearly, 10th to 90th percentile
Openings a year
~3,000
projected, 2024–34
Outlook to 2034
+3.9%
About average
Working in the U.S.
38,340
people, nationwide

Openings a year counts new jobs plus the ones that open when people retire or move on — a truer picture of your odds than growth alone.

“Median” means half earn more and half earn less. Your city, employer, and years on the job move it a lot — that is what the 10th-to-90th range shows.

BLS estimates 1% of workers in this occupation are self-employed.

What it pays in your state

Statewide medians are a better starting point than the national number. Your city and experience still matter.

BLS state wage tables

How you get in

Typical starting education

Bachelor's degree

Training path: Bachelor's degree.

Related work experience: None.

On-the-job training: None.

License or certification

A Professional Engineer license is required to approve projects and stamp public designs.

Check the path where you live

Licensing rules and available programs change by state. These federal tools take you to the current official listings.

What it takes

System designEnvironmental scienceData analysisProblem solving

The honest take

Applies engineering to pollution, water, and climate work, with demand tied to regulation.

Standard Occupational Classification 17-2081. Pay and employment from the BLS May 2025 OEWS survey; outlook and openings from the 2024–34 employment projections; job context from the Occupational Outlook Handbook; tasks, interests, work styles, software examples, and job zone from O*NET 30.3. See something off? Tell us.