Environmental Compliance Manager (Field Based)

Environmental Resources Management, Inc.; Richmond (VA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

ERM is seeking an Environmental Compliance Manager (Owner Advisor) in Richmond, VA to partner with our pharmaceutical client’s project leadership and delivery teams, driving environmental stewardship and regulatory compliance on a large capital project.

This full-time, one-year role emphasizes owner-side environmental leadership across construction management and contractors, ensuring risk is managed, permits are met, and environmental plans stay field‑ready with strong leadership influence.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in environmental fields.
• Minimum 8 years of environmental experience on large construction or capital projects.
• Ability to operate as an owner‑side environmental leader with field verification and program oversight.
• Strong knowledge of stormwater, spill prevention, waste management, air and dust controls.

Responsibilities

• Provide owner‑side environmental compliance leadership across the project, aligning with requirements and client expectations.
• Establish a project environmental compliance framework with defined roles and interfaces.
• Maintain field presence to validate controls and permit obligations.
• Coach teams on findings and corrective actions without direct authority.
• Identify, assess and prioritize environmental risks with mitigation strategies.
• Support development and continuous improvement of environmental plans and procedures.
• Coordinate with client SMEs and permitting resources to ensure compliance and reporting.

Skills

Environmental compliance knowledge

Regulatory communication

Risk assessment

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Environmental Science, or equivalent experience

Job description

ERM is hiring an Environmental Compliance Manager (Owner Advisor) in Richmond, VA to serve as a trusted partner to our key pharmaceutical client’s project leadership and delivery teams, supporting environmental stewardship and regulatory compliance across a large, fast‑paced capital project. Acting on behalf of the client, this role provides owner‑side environmental leadership across Construction Management (CM), design‑build teams, and contractors, ensuring environmental risks are anticipated, controls are implemented effectively, and compliance obligations are consistently met through a combination of visible field presence and strong leadership influence. This is a Full‑Time (40+ hours per week) limited‑term role with a duration of one (1) year, with potential to extend.

Responsibilities

• Provide owner‑side environmental compliance leadership across the project, ensuring alignment with applicable local, state, and federal requirements and client expectations.
• Establish and maintain a clear, project‑specific environmental compliance framework that defines requirements, roles, and interfaces to guide CM and contractor execution.
• Maintain strong field presence to validate that environmental controls, practices, and behaviors align with approved plans and permit obligations.
• Perform quality checks of contractor and CM environmental inspections and documentation, confirming inspections are occurring at the appropriate cadence and are effective.
• Coach CM and contractor teams on environmental findings, gaps, and emerging risks, driving timely and sustainable corrective actions without direct authority.
• Identify, assess, and prioritize environmental risks through regulatory aspect and gap reviews, recommending risk‑based mitigation strategies.
• Support development, review, and continuous improvement of project environmental plans and procedures to ensure they are executable and field‑ready.
• Partner with client environmental SMEs and permitting resources to ensure construction activities remain aligned with permit conditions and reporting expectations.
• Develop, track, and communicate environmental performance metrics, trends, and key risks to project and executive leadership.
• Participate in environmental incident and spill investigations, ensuring appropriate containment, root cause identification, and preventive actions.
• Coordinate with waste vendors and site teams to support compliant waste handling, profiling, storage, and disposal practices.
• Support chemical inventory management and applicable regulatory reporting by ensuring data accuracy and clear ownership for updates.
• Serve as a primary point of contact for environmental questions requiring practical judgment related to changing scope, sequencing, or site conditions.
• Support environmental readiness for startup and commissioning by verifying environmental requirements are integrated into transition plans.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Environmental Science, or equivalent experience.
• Minimum of 8 years of environmental experience, including significant experience supporting large construction or capital projects.
• Demonstrated ability to operate as an owner‑side environmental leader, balancing field verification with programmatic oversight.
• Strong working knowledge of construction‑phase environmental compliance domains such as stormwater, spill prevention, waste management, air and dust controls.
• Proven ability to translate environmental requirements into practical execution through others.
• Experience influencing CM and contractor performance and driving accountability without direct line authority.
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to deliver concise, executive‑level updates using metrics and risk‑based insights.
• Experience conducting environmental audits or assessments and verifying effective corrective action closure.
• High standards for documentation quality, data integrity, and compliance reporting.
• Experience in life sciences, pharmaceutical, or similarly regulated industries preferred.
• Familiarity with environmental management system concepts and continuous improvement practices preferred.

Who We Are:

As the largest global pure play sustainability consultancy, we partner with the world’s leading organizations, creating innovative solutions to sustainability challenges and unlocking commercial opportunities that meet the needs of today while preserving opportunity for future generations.

At ERM we know that creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive work environment is an essential part of making our company a great place to build a career. We also see our diversity as a strength that helps us create better solutions for our clients.

Our diverse team of world‑class experts supports clients across the breadth of their organizations to operationalize sustainability, underpinned by our deep technical expertise in addressing their environmental, health, safety, risk and social issues.

We call this capability our “boots to boardroom” approach for its comprehensive service model that allows ERM to develop strategic and technical solutions that advance objectives on the ground or at the executive level.

ERM is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.

Thank you for your interest in ERM! At ERM, sustainability is our business. We are the world’s largest advisory firm focused solely on sustainability, offering unparalleled expertise across business and finance. ERM partners with clients to operationalize sustainability at pace and scale, through our unique combination of strategic transformation and technical delivery capabilities.

Our diverse global team of experts works with the world’s leading organizations to help them set clear sustainability targets, measure progress and operationalize strategy through deep implementation and business transformation. With more than 50 years of experience, our ability to integrate sustainability solutions and our depth and breadth of technical knowledge are why organizations choose to partner with us as their trusted advisor.

Every one of us firmly believes in the potential to create value for our clients through an integrated approach to sustainability (because we have personally seen it and professionally achieved it). Our team members are passionate about client service. We work closely with our clients to help them operationalize their sustainability goals and meet their environmental, health and safety objectives while advancing ERM’s purpose through delivering tangible progress in what the United Nations coined The Decade of Action.

Organizing our people across globally integrated communities of technical and strategic talent positions ERM to be a “boots to boardroom” leader in bringing that value creation to our clients, partners, and the world.

We recruit exceptional professionals with a personal and professional passion for sustainability and nurture them to even greater success as specialists. We prepare our consultants to bring integrated, innovative and sustainable solutions to our clients and provide opportunities for ongoing development across a variety of subject areas related to technical, business, and personal growth.

At ERM, effort pays off and becomes career defining work that leaves a positive imprint on our planet.