Department of Health & Community Services

 

Environmental Health

 

What Do Trained  Environmental Health Professionals Do?

       Job Titles

 

Where Do Environmental Health Professionals Work?

 

Workplace health and safety

 

Restaurant inspection

 

Noise abatement

 

Retail food facilities

 

Toxic site cleanup

 

Solid waste handling and disposal

 

Wells and water systems monitoring

 

Industrial health and safety

 

Food protection and safety

 

Wildlife health/management

 

Drinking water quality

 

Air quality

 

Environmental health education

 

Toxicology

 

Radiation protection

 
Housing safety and lead monitoring
 
Wastewater treatment
 
Public pool health and safety                               

 

Vector control

 

Hazardous materials handling        and incident response

 

 

Environmental Health  Specialist

 
Drinking and Groundwater    Specialist
 
Solid Waste Specialist
 
Food Safety Specialist
 
Emergency Management Specialist
 
Hazardous-Waste Management Specialist     
 
Emergency Response  Specialist
 
Toxicologist
 
Air Pollution Specialist
 
Surface Water Specialist

 

Environmental Policy Maker

 

Environmental Advocate

 
Food and Drug Inspector                   
 
Compliance Officer 

 

Environmental Health Educator

 
Epidemiologist
 
Industrial Hygienist
 
Occupational Safety Officer

 

Energy Auditor

Public health agencies at municipal, county, tribal, state levels

Federal  government agencies

 

Indian Health Service

Private corporations (e.g. food retailers, shipping companies, airlines, hospitals, aerospace, manufacturing)

Public utility companies

Environmental consulting firms

Environmental research corporations

Industry

International health organizations

Non-profit environmental organizations

Environmental monitoring companies

Colleges and universities

Wildlife parks

Insurance companies

Energy monitoring organizations

Toxic waste removal firms

     

 

For current job listings and salaries in California, http://www.ccdeh.com/jobs/default.htm      

Is a Career in Environmental Health for You?

Environmental health is the branch of public health that ensures the health and safety of life’s necessities - food, water, air, and shelter - through the enforcement of local, state, and federal regulations. Environmental health specialists are best known for their work within local government to protect and ensure the public’s health at many levels. They may monitor air quality, water and noise pollution, handle hazardous and infectious waste, control for toxic substances and pesticides, conduct restaurant inspections, promote healthy land use, and ensure that public housing and institutions meet health and safety standards, and much more. In addition, the increasing environmental health threats (E. coli outbreaks), the emergence of new diseases (SARS), and the human impact of environmental catastrophes (Hurricane Katrina) show that the need for environmental health professionals is expanding. Despite the important role that environmental health professionals play in keeping our community healthy and safe, the number of job openings is far more than the supply of qualified individuals to fill them.

 

Our curriculum enables you to work either as a generalist in the environmental health field or a specialist in one particular area. Upon graduation from our program, you are qualified to take the California examination to become a Registered Environmental Health Specialist (REHS) after completing 9 months of full-time employment in an environmental health work setting.

 

If You Want a Career that Offers

  • Adventure

  • Job stability

  • Independence

  • Diverse job tasks

  • Opportunities to travel

  • A flexible work schedule

  • Excellent pay and benefits

  • Flexibility in the job market

  • Many types of job opportunities

  • A challenging and fulfilling career

  • The ability to be a “disease detective”

  • An opportunity to work in the field, not at a desk

  • Experience in working with diverse groups of people

  • The ability to help people solve environmental problems

  • Satisfaction that you have reduced the spread of disease

  • Satisfaction that you are contributing to a healthier community

  • An opportunity to be part of the environmental sustainability movement

                                                Then Environmental Health is for YOU!

 

Diana Flannery, PhD, Coordinator, Environmental Health

   Department of Health and Community Services, CSU, Chico

                  Butte Hall 635     530 898-4993   dflannery@csuchico.edu

Website: www.csuchico.edu/hcsv/

 

Forms: ENV: Career

 

 

 

This document is maintained by the HCSV Webmaster
Last updated: 03/23/2009