Senior Environmental Scientist

Safety, Health, and Environment, Standards and Programs group is committed to full environmental compliance and establishing our position as an environmental leader to support the companies' vision to become the leading utility in the United States. We are undertaking numerous initiatives to put our environmental values to work - while at the same time delighting our customers, energizing our employees and rewarding our shareholders.

Position Summary

This is an ESC represented exempt classification currently subject to collective bargaining.

This senior level position provides technical support and programmatic management for a wide range of hazardous materials and hazardous waste issues.

Job Responsibilities

• Safety: Completing all required safety training; Promoting safety awareness; Conducting work in accordance with all safety procedures.
• Program/Project Management: Effectively structure and control program/project work; integrate all aspects, ensure that work progresses on schedule and that work meets specification or required standards. Recognize established timelines and budget constraints when planning work efforts and scheduling resources. Monitor timelines, milestones, and resource usage (actual vs. plan); address scope changes by adjusting work efforts and plans. Ensure that supervisor and LOB clients are notified of any deviations to cost, deliverables, or schedule commitments, and establish regular checkpoint controls for timeliness and accuracy of deliverables. Oversee contractor work and function as single point of contact for business partners, agencies, and contractors as required.
• Consulting/Expertise: Participate in continuous learning opportunities to enhance technical and operational expertise (e.g., attending conferences, partnering with field operations, providing vacation relief, completing additional education, etc.). Monitor professional and technical advancements and adjust techniques to incorporate best practices with management input and guidance. Develop and deliver high-quality training and training materials in responsible areas of knowledge. Develop, write, revise, and improve procedures and processes to implement regulatory requirements.
• Compliance/Regulatory Support: Monitor changes to existing and pending laws and regulations, by using on-line tools and communications from government, agencies, and industry associations.
• Apply principles and processes of laws, rules, regulations, and codes; identify and resolve compliance issues. Communicate potential impacts (financial and operational), of pending regulation to affected LOBs, through SH&E leadership team. Respond to information requests from LOB clients, industry associations, and public agencies (e.g., pesticide programs, interpreting spill data, transformer PCB composition data, water quality data, natural gas composition, etc.). Input and maintain all compliance commitments in assigned database with appropriate task notifications and escalations. Ensure compliance through record-keeping and accurate and concise documentation. Lead efforts to identify and resolve compliance issues; implement corrective actions or preventive controls for cross-functional LOB issues. Ensure timely completion of required environmental training and all assignments. Lead root cause analyses or process improvement initiatives to improve compliance. Prepare and/or confirm accuracy of technical data
• Financial Management: Monitor assigned project and program budgets, ensuring contractor invoices, are timely, within approved contract limits, and do not exceed approved budget for the work. Process invoices in accordance with all applicable Accounts Payable guidelines. Provide accurate forecasts for assigned projects and programs in a timely manner; supervisor informed well in advance if costs may exceed or significantly under run budget. Meet with stakeholders and client groups to review costs for assigned projects and programs, address questions and resolve issues.
• Quality Assurance: Organize multiple assignments, sometimes of a complex nature or involving competing priorities, to produce work products that are accurate, thorough, and on time. Collect and analyze operational/field data using risk analysis to determine degree of potential operational or economic impact and/or risk to PG&E and make recommendations to address such impacts. Coordinate data collection from various internal and external sources, review data for accuracy, and revise as needed.
• Ensure that work procedures are well-developed, documented and issued in a timely manner, roles and responsibilities are clearly defined and understood, training is developed and implemented, communication plans are followed through and validated, and measures and controls are established.
• Interaction: External interaction primarily includes directing project-related work and contract administration with contractors and vendors; also includes providing information, leading discussions, and obtaining approvals from regulatory agencies. Internal contacts primarily are with Line of Business partners, colleagues, and the Environmental Management team. Tasks include directing project-related work, discussing and reporting progress, exchanging and coordinating information, managing meetings and providing appropriate documentation.

Qualifications

Minimum:

• 8 years of experience in a relevant environmental field such as hazardous waste management, remediation, spill response .
• Bachelor’s degree in an environmental discipline, sciences, or engineering
• Must possess a valid California driver’s license or ability to obtain by first day of employment

Desired:

• Master’s degree in environmental discipline, sciences, engineering or MBA
• Project management training (e.g., Project Management Professional (PMP) certification)
• Certified Hazardous Materials Manager credential, Registered Environmental Health Specialist, Project Management Professional, or other relevant professional certification
• Six Sigma and/or Lean training
• Write guidance documents, or collaborate with others to create guidance documents
• Implement and drive continuous process improvement including identifying and assessing compliance requirements and risks, developing controls, and identify metrics and evaluate for effectiveness.
• Follow upcoming State and federal waste regulation changes, and assist with implementing changes to comply with those regulation changes

Experienced with various waste regulations including:

• 40 CFR EPA Hazardous Waste Regulations
• RCRA: Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
• TSCA: Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 (PCBs)
• 49 CFR DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations
• CCR Title 22 Division 4.5 Environmental Health Standards for the Management of Hazardous Waste
• High level of IT platform proficiency on standard software packages, the web, and mobile apps.
• Expert knowledge of industry practices, standards, and equipment
• Ability to develop and implement all aspects of multiple assigned projects
• Use of independent judgment
• ­Very strong oral and written communication skills
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision