Environmental Operations Manager (0931) - SFO - 159885

San Francisco Planning; San Francisco, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 161,000 - 206,000; Full time

Job summary

San Francisco International Airport (SFO) seeks an Environmental Operations Manager to lead regulatory compliance, reporting, and program delivery for environmental services. The role covers water, stormwater, air quality, hazardous materials, spill management, and material management, with focus on zero waste-to-landfill goals.

The Manager directs staffing, budgeting, and enforcement of permits, while coordinating with agencies and tenants to uphold environmental standards and promote

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in natural or environmental engineering or closely related field.
• Minimum of 5 years of verifiable environmental compliance experience.
• Minimum 3 years of supervisory experience.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate regulatory reports and permit schedules.
• Provide policy recommendations and ensure compliance across programs.
• Oversee solid waste management and recycling programs for zero-waste goals.
• Audit wastewater and stormwater facilities for compliance and pollution prevention.
• Lead UST program to meet state/federal/local requirements.
• Manage budget and staff of Environmental Operations Unit.

Education

Bachelor's degree in natural science, environmental, mechanical, chemical, civil or sanitary engineering or closely related field

Job description

Environmental Operations Manager (0931) - SFO - 159885

Department: San Francisco International Airport
Job class: 0931-Manager III
Starting salary range: $161,382.00 - $205,972.00 (Range A)
Role type: Permanent Civil Service What does this mean?
Hours: Full-time
Exam type:Position Based Test
Rule:Rule of the List
List type:Combined Promotive and Entrance

About:

This announcement has been amended to reflect changes with the application deadline. Applicants who already applied need not to reapply.
12/16/25: Extended application deadline to December 23, 2025.
12/19/25: Extended application deadline to December 31, 2025.

Application Opening: December 3, 2025
Application Deadline: The job ad will close at 5:00 PM on December 16, 2025.
Compensation: $158,210 – $201,942 annually (as of 01/03/2026)
Recruitment ID: PBT-0931-159885
Certification Rule:Rule of the List

San Francisco International Airport (SFO)is a world-class, award-winning airport that served more than 54 million guests in FY24/25. SFO offers non-stop flights to 60+international cities on over 40 international carriers. The Bay Area's largest airport also connects non-stop with 80+ U.S. cities on 10 domestic airlines.

As an enterprise department of the City & County of San Francisco, SFO has a workforce of approximately 1,900 City employees.In Fiscal 2021, SFO generated more than 28,000 direct jobs and $6.1B in business activity.

SFO is more than an airport —we are a dynamic organization where employees collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders to support global travel, economic development, and public service. We are recognized as a leader in safety, environmental sustainability, and forward-thinking infrastructure, and continue to be at the forefront of transforming the travel experience.

Our Vision, Mission, and Core Values shape our culture and operations as we continue to build a supportive, purpose-driven workplace where all employees can thrive. Our mission is to deliver an airport experience where people and our planet come first.

Under general direction of the Director of Utility Systems, the Environmental Operations Manager leads the activities of the Environmental Operations Unit. This position manages the implementation and enforcement of environmental regulations required by Federal, State and Local laws and regulations. The position requires understanding the complexities of water, storm water and air quality, hazardous materials, spill management, pesticide use and material management as well as requires the application of a wide range of technical skills and procedures to determine proper action. This position will also be responsible to achieve the Airport’s “zero” waste-to-landfill strategic plan goal through the design, implementation and tracking of source reduction, reuse, recycling and composting, and recovery policies, programs and projects. Furthermore, the position determines staffing and project priorities, and ensures that expenditures are in conformance with budget.

The essential duties and responsibilities of this position include:

• Coordinates and ensures regulatory requirements and reports are completed and submitted by required deadlines and/or permit schedule including but are not limited to: National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit required reports, Title V air quality permit quarterly and annual report, certified unified program agencies (CUPA) compliance reports, etc.
• Makes policy recommendations, interprets, and applies policies, laws and regulations to ensure full compliance related to SFO’s environmental services, contracts, capital projects and broader programs.
• Manages the Airport’s solid waste hauling contract, in support of Zero Waste Goals. Material management task include but not limited to: Administering and tracking its waste management contract billing and services; coordinating annual waste characterization studies; Controlling SFO’s Green Business Program including outreach and compliance audits; tracking waste diversion metrics; leading SFO Unites Against Hunger food donation program; tracking and reporting solid waste.
• Audits the inspection of wastewater and storm water facilities, commercial, industrial wastewater, and storm water discharges to determine compliance with established standards and regulations, develop and implements wastewater and storm water pollution prevention and spill management programs.
• Leads the Underground Storage Tank (UST) program for the Airport ensuring the Airport meets state, federal or local requirements for UST systems.
• Coordinates the Refrigerant Monitoring Program, ensuring compliance and prevention of air pollution to mitigate leaks and resultant greenhouse gas emissions.
• Manages and allocates resources to the section’s operational budget for the permit and other fees for the Environmental Operations unit and compliance of regulatory requirements.
• Supervises and directs the daily activities and regulatory compliance activities of the Environmental Operations Section and subordinate staff.
• Maintains working relationships with regulatory agencies; track, develop, implement, report and/or enforce plans, permit conditions, policies and goals designed to ensure adherences to the following environmental regulations required by multiple regulatory agencies include but are not limited to: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB), Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), Certified Unified Program Agencies (CUPA), San Mateo County Environmental Health, Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle).
• Represents the Department before local, state and federal agencies in regarding to environmental and regulatory policies; makes presentations to stakeholders and public officials.
• Works with Airport tenants and agencies on enforcing policies and procedures regarding pest management, zero waste and wastewater, spill and storm water discharges.
• Manages positive community relations by developing partnerships with the general public, tenants, regulatory agencies and community and participates in local, regional, and state working groups; and collecting, reporting and best management practice sharing with other airports, large campuses, nonprofits, and all relevant agencies.

Please note that incumbents in this classification may be required to perform duties as listed in the class specification, which can be found on DHR’s website: https://careers.sf.gov/classifications/ .

How to qualify

• Education: Possession of a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in natural science, environmental, mechanical, chemical, civil or sanitary engineering or closely related field; AND
• Experience: Five (5) yearsof verifiable work experience in environmental compliance programs,wastewater treatment facility, laboratory services, storm water and pollution prevention, or sanitary engineering capacity performing duties comparable to a sanitary engineering/water quality technician, waste, air quality or environmental compliance program management. This experience must include at least three (3) years of supervisory experience.

Notes:
Possession of a valid Class C Driver’s License to be presented at the time of appointment. May be required to deal withemergencies outside regular schedule, including nights, weekends, and holidays.

Desirable Qualifications
The stated desirable qualifications may be used to identify job finalists at the end of the selection process when candidates are referred to hiring.

• Possession of California UST System Operator’s Certificate (From the International Code Council).
• Possession of Industrial Waste Inspection Grade II Certificate or higher issued by California Water Environment Association.
• Strong ability to strategically plan and problem solve at the Management level.
• Strong leadership skills when supervising supervisory personnel.
• Ability to develop, establish and implement program objectives and action plans with appropriate milestones and timelines to meet program/organizational goals.
• Knowledge of NPDES permit and State’s Sanitary Sewer Overflow Order compliance.
• Knowledge of sustainability issues related to water quality, treatment, waste management, air quality.
• Knowledge of underground storage tank, emerging pollutant of concerns, spill management.

Applicants must meet the minimum qualification requirement by the final filing date unless otherwise noted.

One year full-time employment is equivalent to 2,000 hours (2,000 hours of qualifying work experience is based on a 40 hour work week). Any overtime hours that you work above 40 hours per week are not included in the calculation to determine full-time employment.

Verification of Education and Experience
Every application is reviewed to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications as listed in the job ad. Review SF Careers Employment Applications for considerations taken when reviewing applications.

Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at https://careers.sf.gov/knowledge/experienceeducation/ .

Note:Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

Selection Procedures

After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

Supplemental Questionnaire(Weight: 100%)
Candidates who meet the minimum qualifications will be sent a Supplemental Questionnaire. The Supplemental Questionnaire is designed to measure the knowledge, skills and abilities required for this position. All candidates’ responses to the Supplemental Questionnaire are subject to verification. All relevant experience, education and/or training must be included in the responses in order to be reviewed in the rating process.

A passing score on the Supplemental Questionnaire must be achieved in order to be placed/ranked on the Eligible List. Candidates will be placed on the eligible list in rank order according to their final score.

Eligible List/Score Report
A confidential eligible list of applicant names that have passed the civil service examination process will be created and used for certification purposes only. An examination score report will be established, so applicants can view the ranks, final scores and number of eligible candidates. Applicant information, including names of applicants on the eligible list, shall not be made public unless required by law. However, an eligible list shall be made available for public inspection, upon request, once the eligible list is exhausted or expired and referrals resolved. The eligible list/score report resulting from this civil service examination process is subject to change after adoption (e.g., as a result of appeals), as directed by the Human Resources Director or the Civil Service Commission.

The duration of the eligible list resulting from this examination process will be of 6 months and may be extended with the approval of the Human Resources Director.

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Security Clearance:
Candidates for employment with the San Francisco Airport Commission are required to undergo a criminal history record check, including FBI fingerprints, and Security Threat Assessment in order to determine eligibility for security clearance and may be required to undergo drug/alcohol screening. Per Civil Service Commission Rule Section 110.9.1, every applicant for an examination must possess and maintain the qualifications required by law and by the examination announcement for the examination. Failure to obtain and maintain security clearance may be basis for termination from employment with the Airport Commission.

Customs Clearance:
This position requires that the incumbent be qualified for unescorted access to the San Francisco International Airport U.S. Customs Security Area. An application for a U.S. Custom Access Seal may be submitted to Customs ONLY after employment has commenced. Employment in this position requires that the incumbent submit an application for, successfully acquire and maintain a Customs Access Seal. Per Civil Service Commission Rule 110.9.1, every applicant must possess and maintain the qualifications required by law and by the examination announcement for this examination. Failure to acquire or maintain customs access, a requirement for this position, may be basis for termination from employment with the Airport Commission. Customs Access Seal requirements and procedures are located in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 19, Part 122, Sections 181 or 189.

Terms of Announcement and Appeal Rights:
Applicants must be guided solely by the provisions of this announcement, including requirements, time periods and other particulars, except when superseded by federal, state or local laws, rules or regulations. Clerical errors may be corrected by the posting the correction on the Department of Human Resources website at https://careers.sf.gov/ .

The terms of this announcement may be appealed under Civil Service Rule 111A.35.1. The standard for the review of such appeals is ‘abuse of discretion’ or ‘no rational basis’ for establishing the position description, the minimum qualifications and/or the certification rule. Appeals must include a written statement of the item(s) being contested and the specific reason(s) why the cited item(s) constitute(s) abuse of discretion by the Human Resources Director. Appeals must be submitted directly to the Executive Officer of the Civil Service Commission within five business days of the announcement issuance date.

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.