Environmental Health Officers are key in have been key in reducing air pollution, improving housing standards and food safety, and controlling and managing the risks that infectious diseases and disasters pose to our health.

Depending on where you work, your job as an environmental health officer might involve:

• investigating and responding to disease outbreaks and illnesses, for example, food safety concerns
• monitoring and managing water and air quality
• responding to natural disasters and public health emergencies, like pandemics
• monitoring, assessing and managing the health risks posed by mosquitoes
• working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to manage their environmental health and develop policies and programs
• conducting inspections of tattoo and piercing shops, food stalls and restaurants, and other businesses that are regulated under the law
• enforcing environmental health and public health regulation, including those related to medicines and poisons, pest management, and cigarettes and vapes.

As part of their role to protect public health and wellbeing, environmental health officers may:

• undertake environmental health impact or risk assessments
• develop and implement environmental health laws and policy
• investigate and respond to public health incidents like disease outbreaks
• respond to disasters and emergency situations to protect public health
• monitor and control water, air and noise pollution
• deliver public health education and information campaigns
• investigate and manage complaints about food safety, and enforce health and food safety regulations in shops and restaurants
• Monitor and regulate businesses that have an increased risk of transmitting blood-borne infections, like tattoo and body piercing shops
• implement mosquito surveillance and control programs
• manage public health issues related to major public events.

In some places, environmental health officers might also assess building development applications and inspect houses and public buildings to ensure they comply with environmental or health and safety standards.

Environmental Health Officers may be employed at all levels of government (local, state and federal), in health departments, health services and public health units, and the Defence Force. Some environmental health officers may also work in the private sector, for example in the food manufacturing and testing sector.

An Environmental Health Officer needs to have an interest in science and healthcare and be an excellent problem-solver. You need to be able to work under pressure with good time management and organisational skills and sometimes in stressful situations. You need excellent communication skills to work with a diverse range of people. You should also like working outdoors some of the time.

The average salary is $1,938 per week depending on employer organisation and experience. (Reference: Jobs and skills Australia, 2025)