Description
Apply environmental engineering principles to monitor, operate, and maintain systems that prevent, control, and remediate water pollution, including wastewater and stormwater treatment, under the direction of engineers or scientists. Conduct sampling and testing, adjust processes, and assist in the development or deployment of water treatment and monitoring equipment.
- • Receive, set up, calibrate, and decontaminate water sampling and treatment equipment.
- • Maintain plant logs, chain-of-custody records, and electronic data files.
- • Perform water quality work in field, laboratory, and treatment plant settings.
- • Review sampling plans, SOPs, and compliance documents for completeness.
- • Review daily work plans and schedules for sampling, inspections, and maintenance.
- • Source chemicals, media, instruments, and parts, and place orders to maintain inventory.
- • Arrange proper handling and disposal of contaminated water, sludge, and spent chemicals.
- • Develop task plans and specifications for sampling events, inspections, or equipment installation.
- • Assess natural attenuation or BMP effectiveness for removing nutrients, pathogens, or emerging contaminants.
- • Create simple hydraulic or fate-and-transport models to predict pollutant movement in sewers or receiving waters.
- • Decontaminate and maintain autosamplers, probes, and field meters used for water monitoring.
- • Evaluate and recommend treatment or BMP technologies for wastewater, stormwater, or contaminated surface or groundwater cleanup.
- • Model biological, chemical, or physical treatment processes such as activated sludge, filtration, and disinfection to improve removal efficiency.
- • Collect, preserve, and package water and sludge samples for laboratory testing and shipping.
- • Prepare permit applications, DMRs, and assist with compliance reviews for NPDES or pretreatment permits.
- • Record field and laboratory observations, test results, and photographs in databases or CMMS.
- • Collect and analyze water pollution samples from influent, effluent, sewers, outfalls, and receiving waters.
- • Inspect industrial users, lift stations, or treatment facilities for compliance with wastewater and stormwater regulations and permits.
- • Provide technical support for planning and commissioning wastewater or stormwater projects to ensure regulatory compliance.
- • Optimize chemical dosing and process controls to reduce pollutant discharges such as BOD, TSS, nutrients, and pathogens.
- • Lead or coordinate support staff or contractors during sampling or maintenance activities.
- • Assist in containment and cleanup of sewer overflows, illicit discharges, or chemical spills to waterways.
- • Prepare water quality reports, dashboards, charts, and sketches summarizing monitoring data.
- • Monitor process parameters such as flow, DO, pH, turbidity, chlorine, and ORP, and investigate anomalies.
- • Work with industrial users, developers, or the public to minimize water pollution and implement BMPs.
- • Perform statistical analysis, QA/QC, and validation of water monitoring data.
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
