REGISTERED ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH INSPECTOR 1

Definition

Under general supervision of a higher level Registered Environmental Health Inspector or other supervisory official in a state department, institution, or agency, conducts environmental health inspections concerned with the enforcement of relevant public heath laws and codes; does other related duties.

Examples of work

• Organizes assigned technical field work and develops effective and efficient work methods.
• Conducts surveys and investigations of communicable disease and epidemics which may be related to toxic substances, environmental sanitation, food, milk, water, and so forth.
• Conducts sanitary inspections of low acid food processing plants, canning factories, and pickling and fermentation processes.
• Conducts inspections and investigations, and helps plan and give demonstrations of current and appropriate methods for controlling insects and rodents.
• Conducts inspections and evaluations of individual, community, and noncommunity water supply systems such as wells and springs.
• Assembles, reviews, and utilizes articles, bulletins, demonstrations, and other educational methods and materials concerning varied phases of environmental sanitation.
• Conducts inspections of food plant, hospital, and other institutional water treatment operations.
• Conducts sanitary inspections of wholesale food manufacturing plants, nonalcoholic beverage and water bottling plants, bakeries, food warehouses, cosmetic plants, and so forth.
• Conducts technical surveys and monitoring in varied health and sanitation areas and programs.
• Utilizes sophisticated instrumentation in the survey and inspection process.
• Conducts inspections of individual sewage disposal systems such as septic tanks and package treatment plants.
• Plans and conducts orientation and inservice training courses for staff members of environmental sanitation programs.
• Conducts inspections in facilities, communities, institutions, and/or places of business to evaluate compliance with existing sanitation standards and regulations.
• Prepares technical reports which contain findings, conclusions, and recommendations.
• Establishes and maintains records and files.
• Conducts sanitary inspections of dairies, milk pasteurization and processing plants, frozen dessert establishments, and other types of food and beverage production, processing, and distribution facilities.
• Conducts sanitary inspections, evaluations, and investigations of varied private, business, government, and institutional facilities including but not limited to child-care centers, swimming pools, recreational areas and facilities, and health- care facilities.
• Conducts regulated medical waste compliance inspections.
• Conducts inspections of lead and asbestos abatement sites for compliance with state and federal regulations.
• May conduct instructional programs for institutional food handlers in relation to personal hygiene, food sanitation, and prevention of food-borne illness.
• Prepares reports containing findings and recommendations.
• Will be required to learn to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office or related units.

Experience

One (1) year of experience in technical environmental sanitation work in the field of public health.

License

Applicants must possess a license as a Registered Environmental Health Specialist issued by the NJ Department of Health and Senior Services.

Appointees will be required to possess a driver's license valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather than employee mobility, is necessary to perform essential duties of the position.

Knowledge, skills and abilities

• Knowledges of sanitation inspection and enforcement procedures.
• Knowledge of communicable diseases, epidemiology, causative organisms, channels and reservoirs of infection, vehicles of infection, microbiology toxicology, and bacteriology.
• Knowledge of thermal processing and retorting methods; heat resistance of microorganisms and spores, and pH and thermal death times for pathogenic and nonpathogenic microorganisms.
• Knowledge of chemical transformations of organic substances, and the action of enzymes on yeasts, molds and fungi, moisture, and acidity and salt contents of foods.
• Knowledge of entomology, classes of insects, diseases transmitted by insects/rodents,the chemical, biological, and physical control of insects/rodents, the chemistry of pesticides, the sciences necessary for measuring insecticide concentrations, and the impact of insects/rodents on public health.
• Knowledge of the physical, biological, and chemical characteristics of water, biological and chemical contaminants and impurities, methods for microbiological examination of water, methods of protecting water supplies, chlorine residuals, and topography and soil structure.
• Knowledge of principals of milk, food, and drug sanitation, sewage disposal, solid waste disposal, water purification, and steam and air pollution control.
• Knowledge of biological and physical characteristics of shellfish, coliform organisms, toxic chemicals, pesticides, and detergents, pH and turbidity requirements of growing waters, and ultraviolet sterilization techniques.
• Knowledge of aeration, coagulation, filtration, sedimentation, clarification, chlorination, and fluoridation processes, and the mathematics for use in qualitative and quantitative analysis.
• Knowledge of environmental microbiology, sterilization and autoclaving techniques, epidemiology, biocontaminants, communicable disease control, nosocomial infections, germicides, cleaning chemistry, disposal of hazardous wastes.
• Knowledge of biological, biochemical, and physicochemical aspects of food safety.
• Knowledge of problems encountered in planning and organizing sanitation programs.
• Knowledge of principles and elements of sewage and waste water treatment disposal; biological and chemical contamination effects on soils and water, bacteriology of excreta and sewage, soil characteristics, aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative bacteria, chemical decomposition, and spread of enteric disease.
• Knowledge of waterborne organisms related to disease dissemination, entomological control of vectors, waterfront safety techniques, mosquito and fly control measures, poisonous and noxious weeds, elements of environmental pollution, microbiological and qualitative aspects of swimming water, and filtration processes for pools.
• Knowledge of milkborne diseases, biological and physical properties of milk, physical and chemical tests for milk, acceptable pasteurization techniques, appropriate cheese and frozen dessert mix producing methods, dairy farm sanitation, and frozen dessert processing facilities.
• Knowledge of principals of entomology, microbiology, bacteriology, chemistry, wastewater, sewage disposal, communicable diseases, and endemic institutional illnesses.
• Knowledge of principles of food and milk sanitation.
• Ability to organize assigned technical field and office work and develop effective work methods.
• Ability to utilize sophisticated instrumentation in the survey and inspection process.
• Ability to work effectively with associates, supervisory officials, local health officers, and with others interested in or concerned with environmental sanitation and sanitary inspection programs and problems.
• Ability to read, interpret, and apply laws and codes of NJ relating to environmental sanitation and sanitary inspection.
• Ability to utilize sophisticated instrumentation in the survey and inspection process.
• Ability to plan and organize sanitation programs of a general or specialized nature.
• Ability to conduct inspections and investigations.
• Ability to collect chemical and microbiological samples and interpret results.
• Ability to prepare clear, sound, accurate, and informative reports containing findings, conclusions, and recommendations.
• Ability to prepare correspondence.
• Ability to establish and maintain records and files.
• Ability to conduct technical surveys and monitoring in varied health and sanitation areas and programs.
• Ability to learn state and federal regulations regarding the proper disposal of regulated medical waste.
• Ability to learn state and federal regulations pertaining to lead and asbestos abatement.
• Ability to learn current technologi4es regarding the mitigation and control of lead and asbestos hazards.
• Ability to learn to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office or related units.
• Ability to read, write, speak, understand, and communicate in English sufficiently to perform the duties of this position. American Sign Language or Braille may also be considered as acceptable forms of communication.
• Persons with mental or physical disabilities are eligible as long as they can perform the essential functions of the job after reasonable accommodation is made to their known limitations. If the accommodation cannot be made because it would cause the employer undue hardship, such persons may not be eligible.
• CODES: 19/P19 - MCK 12/23/06

Note

The examples of work for this title are for illustrative purposes only. A particular position using this title may not perform all duties listed in this job specification. Conversely, all duties performed on the job may not be listed.

A Master's degree in Public Health, Health Administration, Environmental Health, Sanitation Food Technology, Environmental or Sanitary Engineering, Microbiology, or Public Administration may be substituted for the indicated experience.