Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health
In short: today's best AI models could do about 21% of this job's working time (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) if the work were set up for them, and about 68% by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The conversations, in-person and hands-on work, about 24% of the time, stays with people.
Conduct research or perform investigation for the purpose of identifying, abating, or eliminating sources of pollutants or hazards that affect either the environment or public health. Using knowledge of various scientific disciplines, may collect, synthesize, study, report, and recommend action based on data derived from measurements or observations of air, food, soil, water, and other sources.
89,250 people do this job in the US. $82,220 a year.
Reviewed on October 1, 2026: what each task is made of, and what handing it over would ask.
A typical 40-hour week
- AI could take on0 h
- A person checks AI's work8 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet22 h
- Stays with people10 h
Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 0 hours, 8 hours become checking its work, 22 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 10 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Apply standards and regulations (under an hour, a person checks); Monitor pollution effects (under an hour, a person checks); Present findings to audiences (under an hour, a person checks).
Estimates for a typical week of this job, if progress keeps its long-run pace, counting work the best models finish four times in five. Every task is below.
of the working time. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- 75%
- 1%
- 5%
- 4%
- 15%
of the work: Anthropic's measure of what people already bring to Claude at work (2025). It counts help with part of a task, so it can be higher than the share within reach.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 2.4 work days long four times in five.
What handing it over would take, now
The 21% within reach splits by what a model would need. The dates, pace and reliability follow the controls above. Estimates.
of the working time. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
of the working time. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
is conversation short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the total.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 2%. Today's estimate: 21%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Measured use over time
Of the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled and tied to a work task, 0.011% went to this job's tasks in May 2026, the 368th largest of the 447 jobs that showed up at all; 1 of its 22 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.092% to 0.093% (released February and March 2025); 0.032% to 0.036% (August 2025 to February 2026); 0.011% to 0.011% (April to May 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.092% | 179 of 708 | 8 of 22 |
| Released March 2025 | 0.093% | 170 of 703 | 8 of 22 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.032% | 296 of 655 | 4 of 22 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.038% | 280 of 672 | 6 of 22 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.036% | 297 of 677 | 6 of 22 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.011% | 350 of 434 | 1 of 22 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.011% | 368 of 447 | 1 of 22 |
Measured, not estimated: Anthropic's samples of Claude.ai conversations, each tied by a model to an O*NET task, from the Anthropic Economic Index. It says where Claude's use goes, not how much of this job's working time it covers, so it is not on the same scale as the reach above. The releases differ in their sample, their classifier and the smallest share they report (the June 2026 file rounds each task to a hundredth of a percent, so a smaller task reads as none), which is why a change of method starts a new line. At least 96% of each older release's task-tied use matched this site's tasks, and all of the newest. Claude.ai only, so use through other tools and other companies' models is not in it. Every job ranked.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 31% of this job's working time as physical work. For 19% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 16% in a purpose-built cell, 2% in a structured facility. 0.21 of 3, the 431st highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 69%
- No robot shown 12%
- In a purpose-built cell 16%
- In a structured facility 2%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. The robot behind each rated task is under the task below.
What changes for the people in this job
From the task-by-task review, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five. It says which parts of the work stay with people and which change, not whether anyone keeps a job: that depends on decisions no data set can see.
What stays with people
24% of the working time: the conversation, in-person and hands-on parts of the tasks.
- Monitor pollution effects, the hands-on work, 3%
- Present findings to audiences, the in-person work, 3%
- Conduct applied research, the hands-on work, 3%
- Conduct audits and inspections, the hands-on work, 2%
- Research pollution sources and controls, the hands-on work, 2%
- Monitor development impacts, the hands-on work, 2%
What becomes checking the machine
68% of the working time: desk work a model could do by then, in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs. A person checks it.
- Monitor pollution effects, costly if wrong, 8%
- Conduct applied research, costly if wrong, 7%
- Research pollution sources and controls, costly if wrong, 7%
- Apply standards and regulations, costly if wrong, 6%
- Analyze environmental data, costly if wrong, 6%
- Advise on environmental policy, costly if wrong, 5%
What to learn
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts. About 75% of the time is documents and data, the part models reach first: writing a clear brief, giving the right material, and checking what comes back.
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself. The tasks under What becomes checking the machine, where a mistake costs something, stay a person's to check: spotting what a draft gets wrong is a skill of its own.
- Dealing with people outside the organization. Customers, patients, suppliers or the public: trust with them is built by a person.
- The hands-on craft. About 15% of the time is hands-on work, which no model here does; robots are rated separately on this page.
- Judgment where errors are severe. Some tasks are severe if wrong. Knowing when not to trust an output matters more there than speed.
Your own version of this job: read it against your job description. The headline is free; the full personal report, every task with its timeline and what to learn, is $19 (a sample).
The tasks
Sorted by . 22 tasks from .
| Task | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conduct applied research on environmental topics, such as waste control or treatment or pollution abatement methods.Analysis and writing, with experiments and field work.Done more than monthly by most who do it.Robots: in a structured facility, Mobile robotic chemist (KUKA KMR iiwa mobile manipulator, Cooper group) (University of Liverpool) (demonstrated). Anthropic's rating. | 13% | 1.7 work weeks1.7 work days to 1.2 work months | Documents 80%, hands-on 20% | 1%Desk part half by Aug 2028 |
| Monitor effects of pollution or land degradation and recommend means of prevention or control.Site observations and the analysis and recommendation that follow.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 11% | 1.7 work days3.3 h to 4.2 work days | Documents 70%, hands-on 30% | 22%Desk part half by Mar 2027 |
| Research sources of pollution to determine their effects on the environment and to develop theories or methods of pollution abatement or control.Mostly analysis and writing, with some field work.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 10% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.5 work weeks | Documents 80%, hands-on 20% | 4%Desk part half by Apr 2028 |
| Provide advice on proper standards and regulations or the development of policies, strategies, or codes of practice for environmental management.Written advice, and meetings with those who set the policy.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 7% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 4.2 work days | Documents 70%, conversation 30% | 28%Desk part half by Jan 2027 |
| Review and implement environmental technical standards, guidelines, policies, and formal regulations that meet all appropriate requirements.Reading the standards and writing how they apply.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 6% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 4.2 work days | Documents 100% | 40%Half by Jan 2027 |
| Communicate scientific or technical information to the public, organizations, or internal audiences through oral briefings, written documents, workshops, conferences, training sessions, or public hearings.Written reports, and briefings and hearings in person.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 6% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.7 work days | Documents 50%, in person 50% | 35%Desk part half by now |
| Analyze data to determine validity, quality, and scientific significance and to interpret correlations between human activities and environmental effects.Analysis and interpretation of the data.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 6% | 1.3 work days2.5 h to 4.2 work days | Documents 100% | 36%Half by Feb 2027 |
| Design or direct studies to obtain technical environmental information about planned projects.Designing the study and directing the team doing it.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 5% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.3 work weeks | Documents 80%, conversation 20% | 4%Desk part half by Apr 2028 |
| Develop methods to minimize the impact of production processes on the environment, based on the study and assessment of industrial production, environmental legislation, and physical, biological, and social environments.Study of the process and the law, then the method written up.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 4% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.5 work weeks | Documents 80%, hands-on 20% | 4%Desk part half by Apr 2028 |
| Collect, synthesize, analyze, manage, and report environmental data, such as pollution emission measurements, atmospheric monitoring measurements, meteorological or mineralogical information, or soil or water samples.Samples taken in the field, then the analysis and the report.Done more than weekly by most who do it. AI observed on this task.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Teledyne ISCO / YSI WS-series automated water samplers (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 6.7 h3.3 h to 4.2 work days | Documents 70%, hands-on 30% | 43%Desk part half by now |
| Monitor environmental impacts of development activities.Site visits and the data reviewed.Done more than yearly by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 1.7 work days3.3 h to 4.2 work days | Documents 50%, hands-on 50% | 16%Desk part half by Mar 2027 |
| Conduct environmental audits or inspections or investigations of violations.On site looking at the operation, then the report.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 1.7 work days3.3 h to 4.2 work days | Hands-on 60%, documents 40% | 13%Desk part half by Mar 2027 |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach. Made of: how the task's time splits among five kinds of doing. Only the documents and systems parts can count as within reach, so a task that is 30% documents can be at most 30% within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Environmental Compliance Inspectors58% now, 63% by 2028
- Environmental Engineers31% now, 58% by 2028
- Industrial Ecologists16% now, 88% by 2028
- Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health34% now, 65% by 2028
- Conservation Scientists57% now, 70% by 2028
- Environmental Engineering Technologists and Technicians40% now, 64% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 21% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 68% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five (49% to 75% across the three paces the site shows). Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which tasks of Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health come within reach first?
- Weighted by the time each takes, the tasks with the most within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) are: Apply standards and regulations (40% of the task's time now, 99% by the end of 2028); Monitor pollution effects (22% of the task's time now, 70% by the end of 2028); and Present findings to audiences (35% of the task's time now, 50% by the end of 2028).
- Which tasks of Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Supervise technicians and students. Together such tasks are about 1% of the working time, and the people and body parts of the other tasks stay with people too.
- What should Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health learn as AI takes on more of the work?
- By the job's own task-by-task review, the first things to learn are briefing a model and checking its drafts; reviewing work you did not do yourself; and dealing with people outside the organization. By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 24% of the working time stays with people, 68% becomes checking a model's work and 0% could be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026 and tied to a work task, 0.011% went to this job's tasks, the 368th largest share of the 447 jobs that showed up; 1 of its 22 tasks appeared. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 5%. These are measures of use, not of how much of the work AI could finish, and they cover Claude only.
- Can robots do the physical work of Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 31% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 19% of the working time, 2% in a structured facility. Its index is 0.21 of 3. One example: Mobile robotic chemist (KUKA KMR iiwa mobile manipulator, Cooper group) for "conduct applied research". A robot shown somewhere is not one in every workplace; this site's own estimates still count no physical work as within reach.
- How is this estimated?
- From the 22 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, reviewed one task at a time on October 1, 2026 for what each is made of (documents, business systems, conversation, in person, hands-on), and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. Data checked November 10, 2026.
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