Environmental Economists
Science, Technology, Engineering and MathematicsO*NET 19-3011.01United States
Conduct economic analysis related to environmental protection and use of the natural environment, such as water, air, land, and renewable energy resources. Evaluate and quantify benefits, costs, incentives, and impacts of alternative options using economic principles and statistical techniques.
- Median annual earnings
- $125,451
- Projected change
- +3.7%
- Typical education
- Doctoral degree or more
- Employment
- 20.41K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
48.1% of the workforce
Growing to 21.17K by 2035
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These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
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The work
What environmental economists do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Write technical documents or academic articles to communicate study results or economic forecasts.
- Conduct research on economic and environmental topics, such as alternative fuel use, public and private land use, soil conservation, air and water pollution control, and endangered species protection.
- Collect and analyze data to compare the environmental implications of economic policy or practice alternatives.
- Assess the costs and benefits of various activities, policies, or regulations that affect the environment or natural resource stocks.
- Prepare and deliver presentations to communicate economic and environmental study results, to present policy recommendations, or to raise awareness of environmental consequences.
- Develop programs or policy recommendations to achieve environmental goals in cost-effective ways.
- Develop economic models, forecasts, or scenarios to predict future economic and environmental outcomes.
- Demonstrate or promote the economic benefits of sound environmental regulations.
- Conduct research to study the relationships among environmental problems and patterns of economic production and consumption.
- Perform complex, dynamic, and integrated mathematical modeling of ecological, environmental, or economic systems.
- Write social, legal, or economic impact statements to inform decision makers for natural resource policies, standards, or programs.
- Teach courses in environmental economics.
- Develop systems for collecting, analyzing, and interpreting environmental and economic data.
- Develop programs or policy recommendations to promote sustainability and sustainable development.
- Write research proposals and grant applications to obtain private or public funding for environmental and economic studies.
- Examine the exhaustibility of natural resources or the long-term costs of environmental rehabilitation.
- Monitor or analyze market and environmental trends.
- Develop environmental research project plans, including information on budgets, goals, deliverables, timelines, and resource requirements.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $66,245
- 25th percentile
- $88,869
- 50th percentile
- $125,451
- 75th percentile
- $178,019
- 90th percentile
- $243,221
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $125,451 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+3.7%average or slower
202520,413 jobs
2035 projected21,174 jobs
761 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- Doctoral degree or more
- 48.1%
- Master's or Professional degree
- 40.7%
- Bachelor's degree
- 11.1%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Mathematics
- Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Management of Financial Resources
- Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Agricultural Economists17 postings
- 02Environmental Economists17 postings
- 03Resource Planning Managers3 postings
- 04Lead Economists2 postings
- 05Agriculture Extension Agents1 postings
- 06Financial Economists1 postings
- 07Natural Resources Consultants1 postings
Top employers
- 01Pacific Northwest National Laboratory12 postings
- 02District Of Columbia Courts4 postings
- 03Agricultural Marketing Service3 postings
- 04Colorado State University2 postings
- 05International Monetary Fund2 postings
- 06Southwest Power Pool2 postings
- 07Agricultural & Applied Economics Association1 postings
- 08Auger1 postings
- 09Cascade Natural Gas1 postings
- 10Ers1 postings
- 11HDR1 postings
- 12Intermountain Gas Company1 postings
- 13Kansas Farm Management Association S W1 postings
- 14Langston University1 postings
- 15Montana-Dakota Utilities Co.1 postings
- 16Natural Resources Conservation Service1 postings
- 17Oregon State University1 postings
- 18United States Department of Agriculture1 postings
- 19University of Kentucky1 postings
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