Lead Environmental Compliance Consultant (Field based)

ERM; Richmond (VA); On-site; USD 73,000 - 94,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid time off

Parental leave

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Life insurance

Disability insurance

AD&D insurance

401(k)

Other benefits

Job summary

ERM is hiring a Lead Environmental Compliance Consultant embedded with a technology client in Boydton, VA. This role will drive strategic development and compliant execution of environmental permits for data center construction during their build phase.

This is a full-time, 12-month limited-term position with a potential 6-month extension, reporting to the Compliance Team. Strong PM and permitting experience required, with cross-functional collaboration across stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in environmental science, engineering, or related field preferred.
• Minimum of 5 years of project management and environmental permitting experience.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to establish and maintain cross-functional relationships with internal and external teams.
• Experience with mission-critical facilities or large-scale construction projects.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate with subject‑matter experts to satisfy compliance obligations and Environmental Requirements based on construction timing.
• Coordinate with Permit Managers to understand permit conditions for Construction teams.
• Manage environmental and construction consultants supporting site delivery.
• Conduct site inspections, report to internal stakeholders, assist agency discussions, submit AHJ notifications and reports, advise on compliance concerns in field.
• Identify and mitigate construction-related issues across stormwater, wetlands, streams, threatened species, cultural resources, buffers, tree preservation, and air compliance.
• Assist permitting teams to deliver permit modifications for construction.
• Support regulatory agency, stakeholder and community engagement for new builds.
• Develop environmental risk and compliance mitigations to enable datacenter construction within timelines.
• Manage environmental compliance planning for pre-construction activities and turnover.
• Communicate environmental requirements to diverse stakeholders and report project status.

Skills

Project management

Environmental permitting

Communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Large-scale construction

Education

Bachelor’s degree in environmental science or related field

Job description

ERM is hiring a Lead Environmental Compliance Consultant embedded with a technology client in Boydton, VA. This role will be a key player in both the strategic development and compliant execution of environmental permits for data center projects during their construction phase. This is a full‑time (40 hours per week), limited‑term role with a 12‑month duration, with a possible 6‑month extension.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate with subject‑matter experts to satisfy compliance obligations and Environmental Requirements based on the timing of the overall construction schedule.
• Coordination with Permit Managers to understand permit conditions and drive understanding for Construction teams to ensure compliance with all environmental approvals.
• Management of environmental and construction consultants that support the overall site delivery.
• Consultants support the Compliance Team by conducting required site inspections, regular reporting to internal stakeholders, assisting with agency discussions, submission of AHJ notifications and reports, and advising construction teams on compliance concerns that arise in the field.
• Identification and mitigation of issues that occur during construction related to any of the following: stormwater, wetlands, streams (CWA 404/401), threatened and endangered species, cultural resources, buffers, tree preservations, and air compliance.
• Assistance and coordination with permitting teams to deliver construction requested permit modifications.
• Support of regulatory agency, stakeholder and community engagement activities for new builds.
• Support of development of environmental risk and compliance mitigations to enable datacenter construction and operations within development timelines.
• Management of environmental compliance planning and execution for pre‑construction activities and operational turnover.
• Communication of environmental requirements and environmental expertise to diverse internal and external stakeholders.
• Construction Environmental Compliance Lead will maintain and report project status regularly and contribute to the development and continued improvement of an Environmental Excellence program for datacenter delivery and construction.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in environmental science, engineering, or related field preferred.
• Knowledgeable on CWA 404/401 permits; experience managing and overseeing these permits in the state of Virginia.
• A minimum of 5 years of project management and environmental permitting experience.
• Candidates must possess strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to establish and maintain cross‑functional and positive working relationships with internal and external teams.
• Experience with mission‑critical facilities or large‑scale construction projects.

Salary & Benefits

For the Lead Environmental Compliance Consultant position, the anticipated annual base pay is $72,800-$94,000 (USD). Actual pay will depend on factors such as education, experience, skills, location, performance, and business needs. In some cases, pay may fall outside this range. This role may be eligible for bonus pay subject to the sole discretion of ERM and its policies and procedures (casual and fixed term/flex force employees are not bonus eligible).

• paid time off (vacation, sick, and floating holidays)
• parental leave
• medical
• dental
• vision
• life
• disability
• AD&D insurance
• 401(k)
• other applicable benefits to eligible employees

Company Information

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.

We are 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.

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.