Environmental engineers

Detailed Occupation

Add Comparison

2020 Workforce

30.7k

Average Age

43.4

Estimated Job Growth

3.23%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$88,018

Average Male Salary

$91,979

Average Female Salary

$79,248

About

Environmental engineers are most often employed by the Architectural, engineering & related services industry. The average yearly wage for Environmental engineers was $88,018 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Environmental engineers by wage are Producers & directors, Operations research analysts, and Industrial engineers, including health & safety.

Environmental engineers are part of the Architecture & engineering occupations, along with Architects, except landscape and naval, Landscape architects, Surveyors, cartographers, & photogrammetrists, Aerospace engineers, Chemical engineers, and 16 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Environmental engineers are Elk Grove City PUMA, CA, Broomfield, Jefferson (Northeast), Adams (Northwest) & Boulder (Southeast) Counties PUMA, CO, and Kansas City (South) PUMA, MO. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Environmental engineers are Elk Grove City PUMA, CA, Warrick, Gibson & Posey Counties PUMA, IN, and Kansas City (South) PUMA, MO.

Photo by U.S. Department of the Interior

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Environmental engineers and on wages and locations for those in the field. Architectural, engineering & related services is the industry that employs the most Environmental engineers, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Environmental engineers, by average wage, is Coal mining. Environmental engineers are paid most in Fullerton & Placentia Cities PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in Elk Grove City PUMA, CA.

Yearly Wage

$88,018

AVERAGE SALARY

± $7,629

In 2020, Environmental engineers earned an average of $88,018, $32,064 more than than the average national salary of $55,954.

Industrial engineers, including health & safety make somewhat more than Environmental engineers while Producers & directors make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Environmental engineers as measured by average annual salary in the US.

Wage Distribution

0.262

WAGE GINI

In 2015, Environmental engineers had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.262, which is lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Environmental engineers (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Environmental engineers.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Environmental engineers

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Environmental engineers.

Most Common

The most common industries employing Environmental engineers, by number of employees, are Architectural, engineering & related services, Administration of environmental quality & housing programs, Water, steam, air-conditioning, & irrigation systems, Management, scientific & technical consulting services, National security & international affairs, Sewage treatment facilities, Waste management & remediation services, Administration of human resource programs, Construction, Petroleum refining, and Executive offices & legislative bodies.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Environmental engineers, by average wage, are Coal mining, Electric power generation, transmission & distribution, and Support activities for mining.

Industries by Share

30.7k

2020 Workforce

± 4,301

0.504%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 19.7%

The number of people employed as Environmental engineers has been growing at a rate of 0.504%, from 30,547 people in 2019 to 30,701 people in 2020.

This graphic shows the share of Environmental engineers employed by various industries. Architectural, engineering & related services employs the largest share of Environmental engineers at 27%, followed by Administration of environmental quality & housing programs with 13.7% and Water, steam, air-conditioning, & irrigation systems with 12.2%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Environmental engineers in the US. The average age of male Environmental engineers in the workforce is 45.2 and of female Environmental engineers is 39.3, and the most common race/ethnicity for Environmental engineers is White (Non-Hispanic).

Composition by Sex

21.2k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 3,570

9.55k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 2,399

68.9% of Environmental engineers are Male, making them the more common sex in the occupation. This chart shows the sex breakdown of Environmental engineers.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Environmental engineers

White (Non-Hispanic)
Asian (Non-Hispanic)
Black (Non-Hispanic)

72.5% of Environmental engineers are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 11.4% of Environmental engineers, Asian (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Environmental engineers.

Age by Sex

45.2

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 2.38

39.3

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 3.04

The median age of Environmental engineers is 43.4, and Male employees are generally 5.97 years older than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Environmental engineers from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Environmental engineers is Engineering but a relatively high number of Environmental engineers hold a major in Natural Resources & Conservation.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Environmental engineers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Environmental engineers need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking, and Speaking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Environmental engineers need more than the average amount of Science, Management of Financial Resources, and Mathematics.

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

Projections

Projections on job growth for Environmental Engineers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 10-year national workforce is projected to grow 3.71%, but Environmental Engineers are expected to see a growth of 3.23% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow less than the national average.

Job Growth

3.23%

Estimated Job Growth

10-year Projection

3.71%

National Growth

10-year Projection

This line chart shows the projected 10-year growth in the number of jobs for Environmental Engineers. This profession is expected to grow less than than 3.71%, the average rate of national job growth.