Waste Senior Officer

defra grp ea draycott depot, de72 3nz, defra grp ea owston ferry depot, dn9 1rr, defra grp ea ripley office, de5 3bt, defra grp ea rothley depot, le7 7ae, defra grp ea trentside office, ng2 5fa

grade staff grade 5

post type permanent

role type environment & sustainability, industrial, operational delivery

as part of a team of highly professional waste regulators, you will play a leading role in tackling a diverse range of environmental challenges in sectors such as biowaste, landfill, deposit for recovery, waste treatment and hazardous waste. You will also be expected to play a leading role overseeing permitted facilities requiring an enforcement response.

• you will audit industrial and waste sites ensuring they comply with permitted arrangements, making complex assessments of their ability to protect the environment, prevent pollution and optimise use of resources.
• you will use your influencing and negotiating skills to secure best practice often dealing with people at senior levels within industry and the local stakeholder communities.
• where necessary you will set conditions under which a site may continue to operate and enforce the law should they fail to comply. You will also respond to and investigate incidents making sure suitable preventive and protective action is implemented.
• you will demonstrate excellent technical leadership to all of our staff across a range of waste issues. As well as regulating industry directly, you’ll put your technical leadership skills to work by helping to plan, deliver and assure the department’s work.

everyone that joins us is required to undertake training and participate in incident response duties when the need to respond arises, having an incident role is an essential part of working for the environment agency and is an active way to support communities and prevent harm to the environment. Further information on incident response can be found within your candidate pack.

the team you’ll be a senior officer in one of the three waste teams based in the east midlands. Together with the four installations teams in east midlands, you’ll be part of a fifty strong regulated industry department, regulating everything from the steelworks in scunthorpe and cement plants in the peak district, to the power stations along the trent valley and all sites in between.

• an excellent communicator with a pragmatic, solution-focused approach, you will ideally have experience of dealing with a variety of people from different backgrounds.
• familiarity with environmental legislation and regulations are essential; perhaps you have worked at a site we regulate or as a regulator.
• experience of auditing, environmental management systems and an understanding of how they can improve a company’s environmental performance will be needed.
• an ability to do what it takes to be an exemplar technical leader.
• an ability to develop, organise and bring to life our strategic and tactical plans.
• a track record of training people.
• professional membership of a relevant institute is also desirable e.g. The institute of sustainability and environmental professionals (formerly iema) or memberships awarded by other environmental related professional bodies.

your base location will be one of the environment agency offices in the east midlands area: nottingham, ripley, owston ferry, rothley or draycott.

you’ll be expected to travel throughout the east midlands to inspect and audit industrial sites.

we support a hybrid method of working where a typical week will be a blend of working on-site, in the office or working at home.

description: applies scientific knowledge (various disciplines, depending on team role) to provide sound, science-based evidence to our internal and external customers.

question: you may have worked in an industry regulated under an environmental permit and have some experience of being audited; or in carrying out internal audits yourself. Or you may have worked as an environmental auditor or regulator of an industrial sector.

tell us about your experience and ability to carry out environmental audits to achieve compliance.