Environmental engineers design and evaluate systems, processes and equipment for air, water and soil pollution assessment, prevention and control, solid and hazardous waste management, and remediation of contaminated sites.

Environmental engineers work closely with facility managers and other professionals in the assessment, design, operations and planning of site operations. They may be involved in activities ranging from providing expert testimony in an environmental lawsuit to working on environmental assessments, site development, water purification, wastewater treatment, soil remediation, air pollution control or hazardous waste assessment. They may:

• conduct environmental audits to assess operating industrial sites to determine if operations satisfy environmental quality criteria and guidelines (for more information, see the Environmental Auditor profile) 
• conduct environmental site assessments to determine whether past operations created environmental liabilities that need to be mitigated 
• advise companies and governments about the clean up necessary to protect the health of human beings and the environment
• develop waste management plans for municipalities and industries for safe handling, waste transfer, waste minimization (reduce, reuse, recycle programs), waste treatment (including biological methods such as composting or anaerobic digestion or thermal methods such as gasification) and disposal facilities (for example, sanitary and secure landfills)
• conduct water quality assessments of rivers, lakes and groundwater (including surface water and ground water quality modeling)
• develop and design potable water supply, distribution and treatment systems, or wastewater collection and treatment systems
• conduct air quality assessments at local, regional and global levels (including air quality modeling)
• develop air pollution prevention plans for industrial clients
• develop and design air pollution control systems
• assess the potential environmental impact of land use projects (for example, pipelines, gravel pits), new and existing manufacturing facilities (for example, chemical plants), and large infrastructure projects (for example, airports) on air, water and land
• research and develop methods for minimizing the generation of air, liquid and solid wastes, and treating existing wastes
• advise industry and government regarding environmental policies and standards
• work with others in their organizations to acquire permits to operate or construct new facilities.

Often, environmental engineers work in co-operation with environmental scientists, plant operations and production staff, planners and hazardous waste management technicians as well as lawyers, bankers and regulators.

To plan and manage systems, environmental engineers use computers and computer simulation models, and monitoring instruments and techniques. Constant skill and knowledge upgrading is required to keep up to date with new developments in engineering and environmental science.

Working environments for environmental engineers are as varied as their projects. They may spend most of a working day at a computer workstation, on a project work site or participating in a public hearing. They usually work with a team that may include professionals from other engineering and scientific disciplines, contractors, project owners, architects, bankers, lawyers or government officials.

When working in hazardous conditions, environmental engineers must wear personal protective equipment. Travel for extended periods of time may be required.

The minimum education requirement for environmental engineers is a degree in environmental engineering or a related discipline (for example, civil or chemical engineering). They should be able to use advanced technology (for example, computer models and geographic information systems) in assessing environmental contamination.

Environmental engineers are required to maintain high levels of knowledge of regulations and the ability to provide guidance to businesses on interpretation and acceptable operation and management systems.

In Alberta, the University of Alberta in Edmonton and the University of Calgary offer B.Sc., M.Eng., M.Sc. and PhD degree programs in engineering disciplines. Some disciplines, such as civil engineering, offer environmental engineering specializations or minors at the bachelor's degree level. The University of Calgary offers a multi-disciplinary graduate level specialization in Environmental Engineering involving four engineering departments: civil, chemical and petrochemical, geomatics, and mechanical and manufacturing (for more information, see the Civil Engineer, Chemical Engineer, Geomatics Engineer, Manufacturing Engineer and Mechanical Engineer profiles).

The admission requirement for the bachelor's degree programs in engineering is a competitive average in English Language Arts 30-1, Pure Math 30, Math 31, Chemistry 30 and Physics 30.

Both the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta also offer a co-operative education or internship program consisting of periods of academic study alternating with periods of planned work experience in industry. The co-operative engineering degree program usually takes five years to complete.

Post-secondary institutions throughout Alberta offer university transfer programs that allow students to apply up to two years of study toward university bachelor's degree programs. It is the student's responsibility to ensure that the courses they choose to take will be accepted for credit at the institution to which they wish to transfer.

For current information about programs, admission requirements and mature student admission policies, please check post-secondary calendars or websites.

Under Alberta's Engineering, Geological and Geophysical Professions Act, you must be a registered member of the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGGA) to practice as a Professional Engineer. You do not have to be registered if you work under the direct supervision of a Professional Engineer and do not call yourself a Professional Engineer or use the word Engineer in your job title.

Environmental engineers may work in:

• consulting engineering firms
• municipal, provincial and federal government departments
• manufacturing industries
• chemical and petrochemical industries
• waste management companies
• academic and research institutes
• resource industries (for example, mining, oil and gas).

Some environmental engineers move to related fields such as recycling management or environmental auditing. Those who have M.Sc., M.Eng. or PhD degrees may work in consulting, research or teaching positions at the university or college level.

Environmental engineers are part of the larger National Occupational Classification 2131: Civil Engineers. In Alberta, 83 per cent of people employed as civil engineers work in the following industries:

• Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
• Construction
• Public Administration.

The employment outlook in this occupation will be influenced by a wide variety of factors including:

• trends and events affecting overall employment (especially in the industries listed above)
• location in Alberta
• employment turnover (work opportunities generated by people leaving existing positions)
• occupational growth (work opportunities resulting from the creation of new positions that never existed before)
• size of the occupation.

Employment turnover is expected to increase as members of the baby boom generation retire over the next ten years.

According to the 2009 Alberta Wage and Salary Survey, Albertans in the Civil Engineers occupational group earned from $16.93 to $140.00 an hour. The average wage was $42.60 an hour.

For more detailed information, see WAGEinfo.

Post-secondary institution calendars and websites (see Educational Requirements above)

EDinfo website: www.alis.alberta.ca/edinfo

Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGGA) website: www.apegga.org

Canadian Society for Bioengineering (CSBE) website: www.bioeng.ca