Careers That Create Change

Last Edited: July 1, 2020 By Jared Umphress

Emissions have lowered! Wildlife returns to habitats! BigFoot has been spotted! Although there are some diamonds within the rough, this change is only temporary. The pandemic has been devastating and should not be the solution to Climate Change. As the pandemic is further contained, the global annual emissions could return with a “V shaped recovery”.

As the environment regains attention, someone looking to make a difference will think, what can I do as a citizen, as a community, through my vote, or through a career? In this article, I discuss environmental law, and related careers, with an environmental lawyer.

Background info

I had the great opportunity to interview Mr.Wyels, an Environmental Lawyer who graduated from the University of Southern California.

J: Tell me about yourself and your background.

W: I’m a Dad and husband, and I’ve been an attorney for the State Water Resources Control Board for 27 years. It was my first real job out of law school, I was very fortunate to get it, and I love the work. I practice environmental law in the sense that it’s all about water pollution. The agency that I work for has a lot of different roles, but I specialize in regulating things that could cause water pollution. 

There are many cool facts about the State Water Resource Control Board, which is located at the California Environmental Protection Agency’s headquarters building in downtown Sacramento. For construction materials, a whopping 90% of the structural steel is recycled material, furniture is built from sustainably harvested eucalyptus trees, and the ceiling tiles are made out of 100% recycled material and are recyclable after its life. Their latest energy star score, which rates energy efficiency, was 99 out of 100. The sources are rooftop solar which produces enough energy to power 10 homes, and purchasing the remainder from operations that produce with complete renewable energy.  

J: In a broad sense what is an Environmental Lawyer?

W: So I think probably it is any lawyer that works in the field of environmental law includes people who work for government agencies like myself where the agency is involved in some form of environmental work, it includes people who work for non-profit agencies where their mission is to advocate for environmental progress, and it includes people who work for private law firms, typically representing clients that are potentially impacting the environment.

J: How did you get interested in this field?

W: Growing up as a lifeguard in Long Beach and always around the water and at some point I realized that I found legal things interesting.  I was in undergraduate school and I realized that I could do some good, and hopefully clean up the waters that I was in charge of being a lifeguard around. 

Preparation

How should someone prepare to be an environmental lawyer, and what is the pathway?

Starting in high school, Biology, Chemistry, English, AP government, Econ, are classes you should be pretty strong in. Overall, it is beneficial to be a well rounded student. 

Moving on to college, Mr.Wyels offers two trains of thought. Go to a college that is strong in environmental science, or one that is strong in courses that prepare graduates for law school. After four years of college, you take the LSAT, which is similar to the SAT but for law school. After that, you study three years at law school, and then you are set. 

Career Options

As an environmental lawyer, you can either work for the government, non-profit (full time, or voluntarily), private firms, or trade organizations. Private firms and Trade Organizations typically do not have environmental protection as one of their main foci.

Mr. Wyels estimates that an environmental lawyer that works for a private firm or trade organization could earn anywhere between 200 thousand, up to more than 500 thousand. For the government, the salary may start at 60 thousand, and can increase to a little under 200 thousand. A non-profit lawyer can earn anywhere from nothing, up to 100 thousand which Phil Wyels said would be a good salary for most non-profits. Personally, I believe making a positive lasting impact is the most rewarding.

If law is not your cup of tea, there are other careers. 

J: What other careers are there that make positive environmental change?

W: Yeah, so you definitely don’t have to be a lawyer. I work with a lot of people who are environmental scientists, biologists, engineers, geologists, that all work for my agency and are doing work to protect the environment. Same thing for a lot of other agencies. So the science fields are very helpful. And just think, you get to be outdoors some days.

J: Yeah that must be nice.

W: Not bad. Generally the pay might be a bit lower, but a lot of them really like their jobs too. You know politics sometimes sounds like a dirty word, but having people who care about the environment and are willing to get into politics is great, because ultimately they have a lot of influence of what directions whether it is a city like Davis, a state, or a federal government, there is all kinds of rooms for people who make decisions that affect the environment.

Policy

J: Do you create policy, vouch for policy, or review it?

W: I think the answer is yes. It depends on what I’m working on. So to me, policy can sometimes mean the same thing as like a law or regulation that we adopt. It can also mean sometimes something a little different. Sometimes there’s a distinction between what the law requires, on the one hand, and on the other hand, within the realm of options that are available because the law allows those options. Somebody who’s a decision maker needs to choose which of those options to take. They are all legal, but a decision has to be made as between different choices. And I think, at least the way people in my field think about it, it’s more of a policy decision.

J: Although the bill was not passed, what is your opinion on the green new deal?

W: I think there are two ways, two main ways, to move environmental policy. And one of them is to take big bold steps, and the other is what people refer to as incrementalism, which means a lot of smaller steps. And I think they both have their place. The problem with, I shouldn’t say problem, one of the problems with the current political climate in Washington is that, in my opinion, it is virtually impossible to get any bold steps through the Congress. Because the Senate is controlled by Republicans, and the House of Representatives is controlled by Democrats, and it is really hard to get  both chambers to agree on anything that’s bold. So I guess I’m talking about the political reality of getting anything that big through. But then I think sometimes to get smaller steps, you need to start big, then negotiate down. I don’t think that was the strategy of the people who were responsible for the Green New Deal.

There are various agencies in government that’s mission is to protect the environment. Mr.Wyels works for the State Water Resource Control Board, he specializes in regulating water pollution. Here a.re 5 other policy subjects

1. The Department of Toxic Substances, where they create and enforce compliance with rules for hazardous waste and hazardous substances and what components are okay for consumer products; and the Air Resources Board, which includes enforcing certain greenhouse gas emission standards. 
2. The Department of Resources Regulators decide how to dispose of waste. A special case would be the control of tires where mountains of them can create a fire full of dangerous air particles. Here’s a link to a video of a massive tire fire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6tdYDZgSe8
3. There are agencies that protect endangered or threatened species, such as the State Department of Fish and Wildlife and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
4. Within the Air Resources Board, you can specialize in regulating or changing the impacts of pollutants on Climate Change.
5. Certain other law fields can tie in with the Environment such as the Energy Sector. A lawyer may either fight for a damaging industry, or push towards greener energies.

J: Are there some positive environmental changes that you are most proud of?

W: Definitely. A couple that come to mind right off the bat. I helped develop a sort of innovative set of regulations for a coastal watershed back in the 90’s and my understanding is the watershed is doing really well now, fish have returned and it’s in really good shape. Just last year we adopted a new policy for protecting wetlands in California that took many many years but I’m proud of the final results. Those are just two. Another one that I worked on not too long ago was related to ocean desalination plants. Another complex, complicated issue. The idea there was to make sure that these were designed in a way that minimize impacts to marine life so that the intakes for these plants wouldn’t suck in a lot of fish and other ocean life.

Walk the talk

Many will call out environmentalists for flying on commercial planes, so I asked Mr.Wyels to see what sustainable sustainable practices he implements in his life. 

 J: Are there any eco-friendly habits that you practice, and that other people can add into their lives?

W: I compost all of our food scraps, for soil for the yard. I try and not make a lot of vehicle trips, to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions. I try not to buy a lot of single use plastics. Oh and I like to ride my bike places.

J: Under current circumstances, which one is more eco-friendly in your opinion a bidet or toilet paper?

W: Id say probably a bidet over the long haul. There is energy and resource consumption to make them. I’m pretty sure they don’t use too much water once they’re made. So over the long term probably a bidet.

J: What is your opinion about oxybenzone and other chemicals within sunblock?

W: I definitely would avoid using sunscreens that harm corals! There alternatives that can be hard to find and cost a bit more, but they are worth it. Our corals are already under severe stress, even without oxybenzone.

To learn more about the other stresses that corals face, check out my previous article: https://ecosoldier.home.blog/2020/02/11/save-the-turtles-save-the-corals/

J: I noticed you have this beautiful dryscape in your front yard, could you explain the relandscaping process, the plant selection and benefits?

W: Sure. So it was all grass when we moved and it was using a lot of water and took a lot of time to maintain. And so we actually paid someone to remove the grass and bring in some dirt, and then I did the rest and planted plants from the UC Davis arboretum; they were all drought tolerant. They are not zero water, low water, so they are on a drip system. Doesn’t use much water, and doesn’t require much maintenance; a win win.

J: As a final word what would you say to future students to encourage them to pursue environmental law?

Well first I would say, if you have a passion for it you will be a much happier person if you are actually working in an area where you have a passion. The next thing I would say is to get there, you really do need to do well in school. It will give you more options and choices in life; it actually matters. So do well in school and if you find a niche, a special area that you really like, then chase it. Figure out the best school to go to and look for jobs in that area you will be a much happier person for the rest of your life.

J: Now that concludes the interview. Thank you for your time Mr.Wyels.

You’re welcome.