The job of an enviromental consultant may be the same as that of an ecologist in other settings, but typically it is not. Their role is advising government agencies and businesses if their actions comply with policy/law. Although some may be interested in if their actions have ANY impact in the environment, most are probably more interested in what they can and can't do in the current policy environment. It is really NO DIFFERENT than getting legal advice, except that the environmental consultant might have to run tests to advise the client.
For example, lets say I want to open an ice cream shop, and I call a lawyer to determine how I might do this in an area zoned residential. That lawyer explains the procedures necessary to open the shop in that location, options that might be easier, or if it is even possible from a legal perspective. Does this mean I am trying to get away with something? Does it mean the lawyer is helping me get away with something? No. Does it mean as a lawyer the lawyer cannot advice me of my actions that go beyond the policy context? No. Does it mean that most clients care what their impact is beyond the policy context? probably. If a sewage plant calls me and asks me to do a 48 hr whole effluent acute toxicity test with Ceradaphnia dubia on a series of samples they will collect to monitor their compliance with their NPDES permit requirements, am I helping them circumvent the law? Absolutely not. I am doing the test and returning the results to them so they can file it and report it with their reporting documents. Further, i keep records of everything should there be a future legal situation. That is a VERY common request for a private lab. The kinds of things a consultancy might be asked to do include: 1. field collecting of environmental samples and testing of those samples using standard methods (ASTM, USEPA, AWWA all have standard methods). These may be biological, chemical, geological, hydrological, etc.. 2. Phase 1 and phase 2 environmental impact assessments. 3. wildlife and forest inventories. 4. endangered species surveys. 5. landscape studies and GIS analyses. 6. Advisement of policy requirements. 7. Expert opinion, including expert witness in court It is important to realize that government agencies from city municipalities up to the feds and even international organizations use environmental consultancies. In fact, if you were with Green Peace, and collected samples, you could contact a consultancy for testing! Does that mean the consultant is trying to harm industry? That is just as valid a question as if you are trying to help someone circumvent policy. And, trust me, private citizens DO pay consultancies to investigate neighbor's actions that might affect their own property. The consultant has to remain independent of all interests just as a scientist doing a study must set up an unbiased study in any other kind of investigation. The job of a consultant is different than the job of an ecologist in other areas. The job of a consultancy biologist is to evaluate whether a situation is within policy guidelines. This is different from identifying if an action is negative or positive based on ecological guidelines. A company contacts you and wants to know, "Are we complying with the law/policy?" You give them the answer. You really can advise them of future legal requirements, the ecological impacts, etc. that are beyond the current policy setting. However, whether that individual cares, or if that individual will understand what you are giving them is another question. However, assessing a company's effluent toxicity or air emissions, or providing alternative options for compliance with NEPA is no more assisting a company to break laws, than is an auto safety inspector when he/she inspects your automobile and informs you that your car passed the inspection, but head lights needed to be cleaned off or your insurance will need to be renewed next month. The latter is a ridiculous claim and is exactly how environmental consulting agencies should be viewed. This is where the problem comes for some people who take these jobs. A person must be able to separate policy requirements from ecological endpoints. In theory, policy requirements are there to protect the environment, but as ecologists we know policy is often behind science to some degree so you can be in a situtation where you are advising a company that what they are doing is within policy guidelines. A good example might be designated use of surface waters. Designated use determines the policies that apply to a body of water. IF a river, for example, has a designated use for recreation it will have different levels of compliance than one that has a designated us for commerce (transportation). Every body of water is not expected in a policy setting to meet guidelines of the Safe drinking water act for example. This is where understanding what policy means in a legal context is essential. I recall a very astute professor who was asked to outline the critical habitat for an endangered species. He/She did not know or understand that critical habitat is a policy term and a standardized term with a standardized meaning. It did not mean what habitats are important, it meant what habitats are designated by the ESA as critical habitat. He/She wrote the entire report outlining what habitats were critical to the species, and got a lot of flack for it. Why? Because he/she was awarded a contract to outline ESA guidelines, not biological needs. It is VERY hard for some people to make this distinction because of how we are trained in college and how we learn stuff, and also because each of us in ecology tends to have a high set of standards for what what is right and wrong in regard to environmental preservation. Without the education in what policy means, it becomes increasingly difficult to understand what is really happening. Of course some consultants/consultancies are slimy? So are some physicians, lawyers, professors, car mechanics, home inspectors, etc. However, the vast majority that I know, (and I know a freaking lot), are not dishonest, do not attempt to help people break laws, and are basically doing the very same thing that happens in government agecies, especially the USEPA and sometimes the FDA or Dept of Energy, or Dept of the Interior, and in company labs every day for perfectly legit reasons. If you get a job in a university, and the administration tells you pass everyone, what would you do? So, I would expect the same reaction if your consultant employer asked you to break the law. However, if you took a job in academia and they asked you to teach environmental history, for which you felt very uncomfortable, then you might find a different job too. Some people will never feel comfortable advising policy constraints when knowing a particular species or scenario is still not ideal. Unfortunately, hardly anything in the world fits the ideal though, and nothing is perfect. Consultants perform a very important role, but as I've said many times on this listserv, its something you are trained to do in environmental science programs. Being trained as an ecologist, you may be able to perform as an environmental scientist. Likewise, if you are trained as an environmental scientist you may be able to perform as an ecologist. But, environmental science does not equal ecology nor visa versa. EVS is a multidisciplinary field spanning many major fields. Ecology is a subdiscipline within the biological sciences. One requires a lot of policy education, the other requires none. This is why I posted that if you are in ecology, it behooves you to take some env policy courses so you understand the difference between legal/policy requirements and ecological ones. On Thu, Mar 13, 2014 at 5:27 AM, Fdecastro <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi all, > I absolutely agree with *everything* Mark Horsburg says. I worked 3 years as > senior scientist in the environmental dep. of a large Engineering & > Architecture company, and the thing was exactly as he describes. I was > desperate to get out of there. > Better salaries than in academia, though. > FdC > > > > > On 12/03/2014 19:28, Mark Horsburgh wrote: >> >> I worked as an environmental consultant for nearly two years - hated it! >> The primary goal was to circumvent any environmental regulations so that >> the client was free to do whatever they wanted with the property. You >> were >> expected to be doing something that was billable every moment, rather like >> justifying every breath you took. I hope to never have to go back to >> that. >> Just my thoughts based on my experience. >> Mark >> >> >> On Wed, Mar 12, 2014 at 2:33 PM, Malcolm McCallum < >> [email protected]> wrote: >> >>> I found this information to support that previous email on consulting. >>> >>> http://www.pmenv.com/Environmental-Consulting-Career-Advice >>> >>> I hope this helps out some people. >>> >>> On Wed, Mar 12, 2014 at 1:29 PM, Malcolm McCallum >>> <[email protected]> wrote: >>>> >>>> A few moments ago I did an indeed search "for environmental consultant." >>>> The search returned 4,362 vacancies, compared to the 721 academic >>>> posts listed on the ecology job wiki. Now, many of these >>>> solicitations were older and had not been removed from the web yet. >>>> Others, certainly are not appropriate for an ecologist. But, the same >>>> can be said of the 721 posted on the jobs wiki. >>>> >>>> My point here is that if you are a doctoral ecology student, it >>>> behooves you to take some courses in environmental >>>> policy/environmental law/risk assessment/environmental assessment >>>> before you graduate, maybe even a course or two in business management >>>> or public administration. The pay is often better than what you get >>>> in academia, and you still work on projects that can be pretty >>>> intriguing. These will be very applied, and you will be expected to >>>> beat the bushes for contracts I suspect. But, find me an academic who >>>> is not expected to find $$. >>>> >>>> I've applied for a few of these in the past, I'm sure many others >>>> have. I get the feeling most positions are filled by MS level >>>> employees, but I know plenty of PHDs doing this. >>>> >>>> With so many people discussing employment opportunities, I felt it >>>> might be worth mentioning this on the listserv. It would be >>>> especially interesting to hear input form those who do this kind of >>>> work. IT would probably be useful for the many people who are seeking >>>> employment. >>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Malcolm L. McCallum >>>> Department of Environmental Studies >>>> University of Illinois at Springfield >>>> >>>> Managing Editor, >>>> Herpetological Conservation and Biology >>>> >>>> "Nothing is more priceless and worthy of preservation than the rich >>>> array of animal life with which our country has been blessed. It is a >>>> many-faceted treasure, of value to scholars, scientists, and nature >>>> lovers alike, and it forms a vital part of the heritage we all share >>>> as Americans." >>>> -President Richard Nixon upon signing the Endangered Species Act of >>>> 1973 into law. >>>> >>>> "Peer pressure is designed to contain anyone with a sense of drive" - >>>> Allan Nation >>>> >>>> 1880's: "There's lots of good fish in the sea" W.S. Gilbert >>>> 1990's: Many fish stocks depleted due to overfishing, habitat loss, >>>> and pollution. >>>> 2000: Marine reserves, ecosystem restoration, and pollution reduction >>>> MAY help restore populations. >>>> 2022: Soylent Green is People! >>>> >>>> The Seven Blunders of the World (Mohandas Gandhi) >>>> Wealth w/o work >>>> Pleasure w/o conscience >>>> Knowledge w/o character >>>> Commerce w/o morality >>>> Science w/o humanity >>>> Worship w/o sacrifice >>>> Politics w/o principle >>>> >>>> Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any >>>> attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may >>>> contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized >>>> review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not >>>> the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and >>>> destroy all copies of the original message. >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> Malcolm L. McCallum >>> Department of Environmental Studies >>> University of Illinois at Springfield >>> >>> Managing Editor, >>> Herpetological Conservation and Biology >>> >>> "Nothing is more priceless and worthy of preservation than the rich >>> array of animal life with which our country has been blessed. It is a >>> many-faceted treasure, of value to scholars, scientists, and nature >>> lovers alike, and it forms a vital part of the heritage we all share >>> as Americans." >>> -President Richard Nixon upon signing the Endangered Species Act of >>> 1973 into law. >>> >>> "Peer pressure is designed to contain anyone with a sense of drive" - >>> Allan Nation >>> >>> 1880's: "There's lots of good fish in the sea" W.S. Gilbert >>> 1990's: Many fish stocks depleted due to overfishing, habitat loss, >>> and pollution. >>> 2000: Marine reserves, ecosystem restoration, and pollution reduction >>> MAY help restore populations. >>> 2022: Soylent Green is People! >>> >>> The Seven Blunders of the World (Mohandas Gandhi) >>> Wealth w/o work >>> Pleasure w/o conscience >>> Knowledge w/o character >>> Commerce w/o morality >>> Science w/o humanity >>> Worship w/o sacrifice >>> Politics w/o principle >>> >>> Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any >>> attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may >>> contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized >>> review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not >>> the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and >>> destroy all copies of the original message. >>> > -- Malcolm L. McCallum Department of Environmental Studies University of Illinois at Springfield Managing Editor, Herpetological Conservation and Biology "Nothing is more priceless and worthy of preservation than the rich array of animal life with which our country has been blessed. It is a many-faceted treasure, of value to scholars, scientists, and nature lovers alike, and it forms a vital part of the heritage we all share as Americans." -President Richard Nixon upon signing the Endangered Species Act of 1973 into law. "Peer pressure is designed to contain anyone with a sense of drive" - Allan Nation 1880's: "There's lots of good fish in the sea" W.S. Gilbert 1990's: Many fish stocks depleted due to overfishing, habitat loss, and pollution. 2000: Marine reserves, ecosystem restoration, and pollution reduction MAY help restore populations. 2022: Soylent Green is People! The Seven Blunders of the World (Mohandas Gandhi) Wealth w/o work Pleasure w/o conscience Knowledge w/o character Commerce w/o morality Science w/o humanity Worship w/o sacrifice Politics w/o principle Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.
