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AI Automation Index
Will AI Replace Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health?
Task-level automation exposure for Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health: 25 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.
E-E-A-T Verified
Developed & audited by Gini Loh Automation Exposure
40%
weighted task index
25 of 25 tasks scored
Median Salary
$55,090 / year
BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation
Employment Level
Medium
34,670 people hold this job — size, not growth
Projected 2025–35
+6.9%
employment change
5,300 openings a year · BLS line item
Pay by state
BLS OEWS publishes 50 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.
$34,370 – $67,160
Highest medians
Washington $67,160
Nebraska $66,240
Connecticut $66,120
Minnesota $65,320
Rhode Island $64,830
Lowest medians
Puerto Rico $34,370
Mississippi $35,010
South Dakota $44,180
Alabama $45,000
Delaware $45,720
State figures come from the 19-4042 row in the May 2025 state panel. States where the estimate was suppressed or too small to publish are absent.
What the score is made of
Each task is mapped to its work activities, scored for AI automation potential, and weighted by how important those activities are to the job. These are the components.
Automation potential 40%
Importance-weighted mean of the scored tasks. This is the headline index.
Physical work 26%
Share of weighted tasks in hands-on or machine-operating work activities.
Judgment & influence 45%
Share in analysis, decisions, teaching, directing, advising, or caring for others.
Routine administration 12%
Share in documenting, recording, and administrative activities.
Rewritten by O*NET 0%
Share of weighted tasks O*NET rewrote in a recent update. Reported, not folded into the score.
Consequence of error 14/100
Low
O*NET's own rating of how serious an uncorrectable mistake would be here — respondents, not us. Deliberately not in the index: the score measures what AI can do with the task content, and multiplying it by stakes would be our judgment dressed as data.
Constituent Task Mix
25 tasks for this occupation, weighted by work-activity importance. Shares below are of total task weight, not task count.
High exposure (≥ 60% of the task is automatable) 20%
5 tasks
Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 38%
10 tasks
Low exposure (below 35%) 42%
10 tasks
How would you survive?
Move your week away from the high-exposure tasks and toward the ones that need judgment. The simulator recalculates the index as you shift the mix.
Simulate Upskilling →Constituent Tasks
#1550 · Core · 8% automatable
Collect samples of gases, soils, water, industrial wastewater, or asbestos products to conduct tests on pollutant levels or identify sources of pollution.
situated mobility — Environmental sampling needs field presence and hands
Collect environmental data or samples.
#20869 · Core · 24% automatable
Investigate hazardous conditions or spills or outbreaks of disease or food poisoning, collecting samples for analysis.
data analysis — Failure data analysis aided; physical inspection human
Investigate system, equipment, or product failures. Collect samples for analysis or testing.
#1549 · Core · 77% automatable
Record test data and prepare reports, summaries, or charts that interpret test results.
data analysis — Record research or operational data into schemas
Prepare scientific or technical reports or presentations. Record research or operational data.
#1556 · Core · 8% automatable
Prepare samples or photomicrographs for testing and analysis.
physical manipulation — Hands-on sample preparation
Prepare biological samples for testing or analysis.
#1560 · Core · 50% automatable
Discuss test results and analyses with customers.
interpersonal — Client information exchange is live relational work
Confer with clients to exchange information.
#1565 · Core · 22% automatable
Inspect workplaces to ensure the absence of health and safety hazards, such as high noise levels, radiation, or potential lighting hazards.
visual inspection — Workplace safety inspection needs on-site presence
Inspect work environments to ensure safety.
#1566 · Core · 20% automatable
Weigh, analyze, or measure collected sample particles, such as lead, coal dust, or rock, to determine concentration of pollutants.
physical manipulation — Lab sample handling and instruments are hands-on
Analyze geological samples.
#1553 · Core · 18% automatable
Calibrate microscopes or test instruments.
physical manipulation — Physical calibration of instruments requires hands
Calibrate scientific or technical equipment.
#1552 · Core · 55% automatable
Provide information or technical or program assistance to government representatives, employers, or the general public on the issues of public health, environmental protection, or workplace safety.
decision support — Policy analysis drafted; political judgment human
Advise others on matters of public policy.
#1561 · Core · 82% automatable
Maintain files, such as hazardous waste databases, chemical usage data, personnel exposure information, or diagrams showing equipment locations.
data analysis — Record research or operational data into schemas
Record research or operational data.
#1563 · Core · 8% automatable
Set up equipment or stations to monitor and collect pollutants from sites, such as smoke stacks, manufacturing plants, or mechanical equipment.
physical manipulation — Physical lab equipment setup
Set up laboratory or field equipment.
#1570 · Core · 40% automatable
Develop or implement programs for monitoring of environmental pollution or radiation.
decision support — Sustainability plans drafted; organizational buy-in human
Develop environmental sustainability plans or projects. Direct natural resources management or conservation programs.
#19799 · Core · 39% automatable
Monitor emission control devices to ensure they are operating properly and comply with state and federal regulations.
decision support — Maps facts to statutes; legal accountability stays human
Inspect equipment to ensure proper functioning. Assess compliance with environmental laws.
#1554 · Core · 62% automatable
Make recommendations to control or eliminate unsafe conditions at workplaces or public facilities.
decision support — Drafts advice; accountability and context owned by human
Advise others on business or operational matters.
#1557 · Core · 50% automatable
Calculate amount of pollutant in samples or compute air pollution or gas flow in industrial processes, using chemical and mathematical formulas.
data analysis — Weight/volume calculations from given data
Measure physical or chemical properties of materials or objects. Calculate weights, volumes or other characteristics of materials.
#20871 · Core · 48% automatable
Develop testing procedures.
decision support — Method development needs empirical validation
Develop environmental research methods.
#1562 · Core · 72% automatable
Perform statistical analysis of environmental data.
data analysis — Statistical analysis of environmental datasets is automatable
Analyze environmental data.
#19798 · Core · 40% automatable
Develop or implement site recycling or hazardous waste stream programs.
decision support — Sustainability plans drafted; organizational buy-in human
Develop environmental sustainability plans or projects. Direct natural resources management or conservation programs.
#20870 · Core · 32% automatable
Direct activities of workers in laboratory.
interpersonal — Technical supervision requires judgment and accountability
Supervise scientific or technical personnel.
#19797 · Core · 58% automatable
Analyze potential environmental impacts of production process changes, and recommend steps to mitigate negative impacts.
data analysis — Analysis aided; primary environmental data collection human
Research environmental impact of industrial or development activities.
#1558 · Supplemental · 25% automatable
Initiate procedures to close down or fine establishments violating environmental or health regulations.
interpersonal — Enforcement coordination requires legal authority and presence
Enforce rules or regulations. Coordinate enforcement of laws or regulations.
#1555 · Supplemental · 20% automatable
Inspect sanitary conditions at public facilities.
visual inspection — Sanitation inspection requires on-site physical check
Inspect areas for compliance with sanitation standards.
#1559 · Supplemental · 55% automatable
Determine amounts and kinds of chemicals to use in destroying harmful organisms or removing impurities from purification systems.
decision support — Mitigation options; human owns compliance
Determine methods to minimize environmental impact of activities.
#1567 · Supplemental · 35% automatable
Examine and analyze material for presence and concentration of contaminants, such as asbestos, using variety of microscopes.
physical manipulation — Chemical analysis requires instruments and hands
Analyze chemical compounds or substances.
#1564 · Supplemental · 72% automatable
Distribute permits, closure plans, or cleanup plans.
text generation — Draft permit docs; human verifies requirements
Prepare documentation for permits or licenses.
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How this was scored
- 1. Tasks. O*NET task statements for this occupation, from a release whose newest record is dated 08/2026.
- 2. Work activities. Each task maps to 1–5 Detailed Work Activities; each activity belongs to one of 41 Generalized Work Activities that O*NET rates for importance (1–5) in this occupation.
- 3. Automation potential. Every work activity carries one score for how far current AI can perform it end-to-end. Tasks inherit the mean of their activities.
- 4. Weighting. Task weight = 0.35 + 0.65 × (importance − 1)/4, scaled by how often the task is performed and by 0.7 for Supplemental tasks. Importance is the task's own O*NET rating where it exists (18,369 of 18,838 tasks); the rest inherit their work activities' importance. The index is the weighted mean.
Check: across the 910 occupations where O*NET also rates how far machine speed sets the pace, this index moves opposite to it (Spearman ρ = -0.49). The more a job is paced by equipment, the less of its task content AI can address — the relationship you would expect if the scoring is working.
Sources · O*NET 31.0 (task records to 08/2026) · BLS OEWS May 2025 · BLS projections 2025-2035 · rubric v2.1 · tasks for O*NET, not a forecast
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