Indoor Environmental Health Specialists

The U.S. Department of Labor does not provide an employment outlook for indoor environmental health specialists, but it does report that job opportunities for environmental engineers will increase faster than the average for all careers from 2023 to 2033.

Studies show that people in the United States and other industrialized nations spend 75 to 90 percent of their time indoors. This statistic reinforces the importance of healthy indoor living conditions. Yet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that “indoor concentrations of some pollutants have increased in recent decades due to such factors as energy-efficient building construction (when it lacks sufficient mechanical ventilation to ensure adequate air exchange) and increased use of synthetic building materials, furnishings, personal care products, pesticides, and household cleaners.” These and other concerns regarding indoor health suggest that there will be a strong need for skilled IEHSs to identify and remediate indoor health issues in both new residential and commercial structures and in existing homes, businesses, factories, and other buildings.