Deputy Director, EHS Strategic Planning & Performance

The NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) enriches the environment and protects public health for all New Yorkers by providing 1.1 billion gallons of high-quality drinking water, managing wastewater and stormwater, and reducing air, noise, and hazardous materials pollution. DEP is the largest combined municipal water and wastewater utility in the country, with nearly 6,000 employees. DEP's water supply system is comprised of 19 reservoirs and 3 controlled lakes throughout the system’s 2,000 square mile watershed that extends 125 miles north and west of the City.

The New York City Bureau of Water Supply seeks to hire an Administrative Public Health Sanitarian, M-3 for a position with Environmental Health and Safety, Core Services Directorate, located in either Valhalla or Kingston, New York.

The mission of the Bureau of Water Supply’s (BWS) Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) Directorate is to actively promote and support the management and implementation of EHS programs through effective communication, education and continuous improvement strategies in order to protect public health and natural resources and ensure a safe and compliant work environment for all employees.

Under direction, of the Director of Environmental Health and Safety, the Administrative Public Health Sanitarian, M-3 will serve as Deputy Director, EHS Strategic Planning & Performance and will work with subordinate staff to provide in-depth regulatory expertise, robust interpretation, clear guidance and employee education regarding a wide variety of applicable EHS regulations to ensure the bureau’s on-going and proactive compliance with various EHS regulations and initiatives. It also involves reviewing proposed rulemaking and legislative changes and preparing appropriate comments for submission, developing implementation plans for BWS to maintain compliance with regulatory changes, monitoring and analyzing the bureau’s EHS performance and developing strategies for improving performance in a sustainable manner, and working to establish an EHS Management System consistent with the principles found in ISO 14001, OSHAS 18001, and ISO 45001. This position also directs and oversees employee training, education, and engagement, and programs and contracts related to occupational health and safety. Specific duties
include:

- Managing the EHS Strategic Planning and Performance Section of the Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) Directorate including direct and indirect reporting staff. This requires setting realistic goals, prioritizing projects and tasks, and assuring that resources are available to meet assigned objectives and customer expectations. This includes guiding and directing Division Chiefs responsible for regulatory review, policy and program development, employee training and engagement, and Continuous Improvement activities (including audits/assessments, incident tracking and analysis, employee injury data, etc.).

- Acting as the Bureau’s primary regulatory, environmental, health, and safety advisor by providing regulatory expertise, interpretation, and guidance regarding all applicable EHS regulations and requirements. Ensuring that the bureau properly influences and remains updated on new/revised EHS requirements and emerging issues by proactively monitoring proposals, preparing factual and professional comments and input suitable for submission to regulating entities, assessing potential impacts of proposed and promulgated new or revised regulations and legislation, and developing internal implementation plans and documents to assure continuing compliance for the bureau. Researching complex technical assignments and provided technical guidance and general direction to BWS personnel in implementing and maintaining compliance with EHS requirements, policies, and procedures.

- Leading efforts to drive EHS performance by monitoring and analyzing EHS performance throughout the bureau and developing strategies for improving performance in a sustainable manner, and leading efforts related to continuous improvement, EHS Management Systems, creation of system-driven processes, and improved document control. This includes coordinating reviews of key performance indicators (KPIs) to gauge EHS performance, identifying trends and commonalities, evaluating the collected data to identify opportunities for improvements, and developing policy and guidance documents to drive EHS performance improvement. Developing and implementing appropriate Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) systems for BWS to evaluate the effectiveness of recommended improvement strategies over time, routinely reports such analysis to the Director.

- Directing and leading the employee education and engagement efforts for BWS and providing EHS and professional development training (internally or through external vendor contracts) and ensures training is properly tracked. This includes working with subordinate staff to identify and provide EHS and professional development training (internally or through external vendor contracts), utilizing existing systems to provide and track training completion/compliance for the bureau, ensuring adequate training opportunities are provided to meet the needs of the bureau, creating, coordinating, and providing specific certification courses for staff, ensuring CEU credits will be accepted by certifying entities for classes taken at BWS, and evaluating and approving the content and quality of training provided by subordinate staff. This also includes directing the design, coordination and operation of EHS-focused employee engagement events such as NSC National Safety Month, BWS Safety Day, OSHA Safe & Sound Week, Safety Stand-Downs, etc.

- Leading and overseeing programs related to employee occupational health and safety and employee EHS concerns. Leading activities and acting as the BWS point-of-contact with agency-level staff and the unions regarding the safety and compliance of BWS work locations and practices. Assuring that various health and safety programs are successfully implemented, managed, and maintained by subordinate staff, ensuring the accurate completion and submission of annual injury and illness reports, managing efforts to assess all BWS facilities under the agency’s Workplace Violence Prevention Program and pre-occupancy assessment program with union representatives, and effectively responds to employee EHS concerns.

- Representing the Bureau and Agency at various meetings with relevant regulatory authorities including USEPA, NYSDOH, and NYSDEC. Communicating effectively to those authorities in the field and cooperates well with interdepartmental staff in developing and implementing corrective actions if warranted and responding to inquiries from such regulators.

- Acting on behalf of the EHS Director during their absence.


Please note, while this position has been posted for Valhalla, NY, we may change it at the time of hire to accommodate the chosen candidate. Possible alternative reporting location is Kingston, NY.


(This is a brief description of what you might do in this position and does not include all the duties of this position)


Preferred Skills:

- Driver’s license valid in the State of New York

- Ability to travel to meetings, work facilities, and field locations throughout the 2,000 square mile upstate watershed (both east and west of the Hudson River) and in New York City.

- Knowledge of and competency in NYSDEC and USEPA Environmental Regulations

- Knowledge of and competency in researching OSHA/PESH Health and Safety Laws and Regulations

- Prior experience working with or establishing EHS Management Systems

- Prior experience in performing EHS audits and/or establishing such audit programs

- Proficiency in data analysis

- Familiarity with Microsoft Dynamics CRM platform

- Competent usage of Microsoft Office products including Word, Excel and Power Point

- Ability to learn DEP-specific database systems

- Advanced and superior technical knowledge of Environmental, Health, and Safety regulations, industry standards, and best practices (Federal and New York State)

- Superior and proven ability to independently research technical information and regulations and provide fact-based, supported interpretations

- Highly effective communication skills – verbal and written

- Demonstrated ability to apply and incorporate EHS requirements into operational activities and settings

- Demonstrated ability to review Federal and State Register Notices, evaluate and summarize contents, and develop appropriate comments supported by facts and data

- Strong supervisory and management skills including the proven ability to effectively evaluate and coach subordinate staff

- Accomplished record of team management and liaison skills

- Strong analytical skills

- Strong planning and organizational skills

- Experience in EHS Management Systems

- Highly proficient in using computer software and databases

- Time management




Work Location:

465 Columbus Avenue

Valhalla, NY 10595

Valhalla is a hamlet in the Town of Mount Pleasant, Westchester County, New York approximately 28 miles north of New York City.


71 Smith Avenue

Kingston, NY 12401

Kingston is a City in Ulster County, New York, approximately 90 miles north of New York City.

ADMINISTRATIVE PUBLIC HEALTH S - 82989

1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university, including or supplemented by 30 credits in the eh biological and/or physical sciences, and four years of satisfactory full-time experience performing inspections to assure compliance with pertinent laws, rules and regulations governing the areas of food, drugs, and general environmental sanitation, eighteen months of which must have been in an administrative, managerial or executive capacity, or in supervising staff performing food, drug and general environmental sanitation inspectors or related work; or

2. An associate degree from an accredited college or university, including or supplemented by 12 credits in the biological and/or physical sciences, and six years of satisfactory full-time experience as described in question "1" above; or

3. Education and/or experience equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However all candidates must have at least 60 credits from an accredited college or university, including 12 credits in the biological and/or physical sciences, and at least two years of experience as a public health sanitarian, including or supplemented by eighteen months of experience in an administrative, managerial, executive or supervisory capacity as described in "1" or "2" above.

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.