DIRECTOR OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

Responsibilities

DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF THE CLASS: This is work of professional
public health nature involving responsibility for planning,
directing, supervising the Environmental Health Services Division
of the County Department of Health. An employee in this class is
responsible for furnishing advice and guidance to local officials
and the general public regarding public health and environmental
health problems and measures necessary for improvement and
compliance with legal requirements; providing leadership, in
promotion of public health through the application of public health
and environmental health practices and enforcement of the
provisions of the Public Health Law, State Sanitary Code and Broome
County Sanitary Code in relation to environmental health matters.
General direction is received from the Public Health Director who
reviews the work for accomplishment and adherence to policy.
Supervision and direction is exercised over a staff which may
include Public Health Engineers, Public Health Sanitarians, Public
Health Technicians, Ground Water Management Specialists and
clerical employees. Does related work as required.

TYPICAL WORK ACTIVITIES:
– Plans, develops, directs and administers the public health and
environmental health program and supervises the work of the
section or division staff;
– Guides and directs educational and regulatory activities pertaining
to the program;
– Supervises enforcement of provisions of Public Health Law, State
Sanitary Code and Broome County Sanitary Code relating to air
pollution, public water supplies, sewage and waste disposal,
operation of water and sewage treatment plants, swimming pools
and bathing beaches, camps, hotels, lodging and boarding
houses, restaurants and public health nuisances and related
matters;
– Consults and advises with staff regarding activities relating to
the sanitary control of food;
– Supervises and directs the activities relating to the promotion of
improved housing to meet public health standards;
– Formulates and supervises programs for insect and rodent control;
– Advises public officials on problems in the operation of garbage
dumps, sanitary landfills, public water supplies, waste water
disposal, air pollution and hazardous waste disposal;
– Conducts public health investigations of outbreaks of disease;
– Formulates and directs programs for training of water and sewage
plant operators, environmental health personnel, food
handlers, restaurant proprietors, camp owners and other
classes of operating personnel;
– Represents the Department of Health on matters and problems related
to environmental health;
– Maintains relationships and cooperates with State and Federal
agencies whose work or policies affect the public health
program;
– Prepares and monitors the division budget;
– Approves payment of bills and vouchers;
– Prepares and reviews division reports to State agencies and State
reports concerning environmental health;
– Formulates public health and environmental health policies;
– May review and approves plans for water supply, sewage disposal,
realty subdivision, swimming pools and beaches, hotels and
motels and food service establishments.

FULL PERFORMANCE KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES AND PERSONAL
CHARACTERISTICS:
– Comprehensive knowledge of the principles, techniques, practices
and administration of public health and environmental health
programs as related to air pollution, water supplies and
purification, sewage disposal, sanitary control of restaurants
and public eating places, smoke abatements, sanitary control
of camps, hotels, lodging houses, boarding houses, swimming
pools, bathing beaches, schools and other places, insect and
rodent control, housing, public health nuisances, general
sanitation, hazardous and solid wastes;
– Thorough knowledge of provisions of Public Health Law, State
Sanitary Code and Broome County Sanitary Code related to above
subjects;
– Ability to plan, develop, direct and administer public health and
environmental health programs and to project and integrate
these into the departmental program;
-Ability to prepare technical reports and correspondence;
– High degree of initiative and resourcefulness in solving difficult
public health problems;
– Ability to deal with public and other officials;
– Ability to develop and maintain good public relations;
– Ability to apply core competencies in public health as described by
the Council On Linkages Between Academia And Public Health
Practice;
– Professional judgment.

Minimum Qualification

Per section 11.91 of the New York State Sanitary Code:
Qualifications of Director of Environmental Health Services

PROMOTIONAL:
Four years of permanent competitive class status as a Senior Public
Health Engineer or Senior Public Health Sanitarian AND completion
of eighteen(18) graduate credits in coursework that encompasses the
five core competencies of a public health education (Biostatistics,
Environmental Health Services, Epidemiology, Health Policy and
Management, and Social and Behavioral Sciences) within three years
of permanent appointment.

OPEN-COMPETITIVE:
A) Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State
registered college or university with a Bachelor’s degree in
sanitary, environmental, chemical, civil or public health
engineering or a related engineering field; OR
B) Graduation from a regionally accredited or New York State
registered college or university with a Bachelor’s degree with
thirty (30) credit hours in the natural sciences, of
which not more than twelve (12) credit hours may be in the
applied sciences;

BOTH A) AND B) ALSO REQUIRE EITHER:
1) Two years of experience as a Supervising Engineer or as a
Supervising Sanitarian which must have included
administrative and supervisory responsibilities; OR
2) Five years of environmental health experience which
includes two years of supervisory experience, which must have
included responsibility for program management.
C) An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined
by the limits of A) and B) above.

DEFINITIONS:
Per section 11.90 of the New York State Sanitary Code
The term natural science shall mean a science such as biology,
chemistry or physics that deals with the objects, phenomena, or
laws of nature and the physical world. It shall include all
physical and biological sciences.
The term applied science shall mean science based courses in
environmental technology, sanitation technology, medical
technology, public health, infection control or food science.
Environmental health encompasses the assessment and control of
those environmental factors that can potentially affect health
(World Health Organization). Environmental health includes, but is
not limited to, the oversight of proper wastewater management,
monitoring of hazardous waste sites and public water supplies,
inspection of restaurants, hotels/motels, children’s camps, mobile
home parks, public pools and beaches, and controlling the spread of
vector borne diseases.

NOTE: A master’s degree in public or environmental health or
a related field that includes completion of eighteen
(18) graduate credits in coursework that encompasses the five
core competencies of a public health education (Biostatistics,
Environmental Health Services, Epidemiology, Health Policy and
Management, and Social and Behavioral Sciences) may be
substituted for up to two (2) years of the required
environmental health experience.

Salary: $87,078

To Apply

To apply, applicants should complete an employment application found here BC_CS_EmploymentApp.pdf . Applications should be emailed to Olivia Catalano, Director of Public Health, [email protected] by December 19th, 2025.