Product Development Ecologist

Manufacturing plants pump out a constant stream of products every day. But goods and services aren’t the only things they pump into society. Production facilities also contribute to air, water, noise, and soil pollution.

That’s where the Product Development Ecologist comes in. If you’re a Product Development Ecologist, it’s your job to evaluate the process and minimize the impact production has on the environment and animal habitats.

This job puts your Ecologist training to work as a Product Development Consultant. The combination of these two sciences allows the Product Development Ecologist to advise businesses about the potential damage their product could cause the surrounding ecosystem.

Think about the paper mill, plastic production plant, or freeze-dried food company in your town. While some pollute the air with the smog coming out of their smokestacks, others have generators and other loud machines cutting through the otherwise peaceful air. Some businesses use water in their production, borrowing from a nearby river and/or releasing waste back into it.

Production isn’t the only culprit either. The Product Development Ecologist looks for products that might cause damage to animal and human habitat as well.

Think about bleach bottles, batteries, and paint. Improper disposal of these products could kill animals, ruin crops, and poison food sources. That’s serious stuff!

If manufacturing and disposal aren’t enough, what about the use of various products? The exhaust fumes from a motorcycle, the CFCs from a hairspray bottle, and lawn fertilizers all end up in our air, water, and soil supply.

As a Product Development Ecologist, you know all of this, so you carefully research the potential damage each product could cause, and advise businesses accordingly.