Consultant, Air quality (modeling)

ERM is the world’s largest specialist sustainability consultancy, with over 50 years of experience helping organizations navigate complex environmental, social, and governance challenges. We bring together a global community of experts to deliver meaningful impact for our clients and the planet.

Our Consulting Delivery Hub (CDH) in India is a critical part of ERM’s global consulting model enabling scalable, high-quality delivery across regions and service lines. CDH teams work in close partnership with regional consultants to support global client projects, providing specialist expertise, driving consistency, and enhancing delivery efficiency across our most important programmes.

As part of the Consulting Delivery Hub, you will collaborate with colleagues worldwide, contribute to complex sustainability projects, and play a key role in shaping the future of global consulting delivery.

Why this role matters?

As a Consultant – Air Quality, you will support ERM's global consulting delivery by providing technical expertise in air dispersion modeling, environmental permitting, air quality assessments projects. You will work within CDH SSO Air Quality team, partnering with North America and EMEA to deliver high-quality modeling and regulatory compliance solutions. This role is critical to enhancing technical excellence, delivery efficiency, and scalable support for global client projects.

What your impact is?

• Develop technically defensible dispersion analyses by converting emissions, meteorological, and operational data into insights that support permitting, compliance, and environmental decision-making.

• Deliver high-quality assessments for global projects, helping clients manage environmental risks, meet regulatory expectations, and identify emissions reduction or pollution control opportunities.

• Enhance confidence in environmental permitting outcomes by applying robust modeling methodologies, quality assurance practices, and regulatory guidance.

• Provide technical leadership in the application of advanced modeling tools, helping project teams solve complex air quality challenges.

• Leverage automation, data analytics, and innovative modeling approaches to improve efficiency, consistency, and quality of project delivery.

• Contribute to capability building, innovation, and continuous improvement initiatives within the team. 

• Support proposal development, technical excellence programs, and knowledge sharing initiatives.

What will you bring?

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in environmental engineering, Environmental Science, Atmospheric Science, or related discipline. 

• Over 8- 12 years of experience in air quality dispersion modeling, air permitting, air quality assessments studies, emissions management, or environmental compliance projects across industrial sector. 

• Strong proficiency in air dispersion modeling tools such as AERMOD, CALPUFF, SCREEN3, AERSCREEN, and other regulatory or non-regulatory models, with a sound understanding of model selection, application, and limitations.

• Sound understanding of air quality regulations, permitting frameworks, and modeling guidance across multiple jurisdictions, including North America and EMEA regions.

• Demonstrated experience developing emissions inventories, source characterization, meteorological data processing, receptor grid development, terrain assessments, and model input preparation.

• Proven ability to manage multiple assignments simultaneously, prioritize competing deadlines, and deliver high-quality work within scope, schedule, and budget expectations.

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, stakeholder engagement, and communication skills. 

Preferred qualifications, skills & competencies

• PhD or master’s degree in environmental engineering, Environmental Science, Atmospheric Science, or related discipline.

• Advanced knowledge of air dispersion modeling principles and regulatory modeling applications.

• Experience executing and reviewing air quality modeling studies and other regulatory models for industrial sector such as refinery, power generation, etc.

• Experience supporting environmental permitting, compliance, impact assessment, and emissions management projects.

• Familiarity with modeling-related data processing tools, and automation workflows.

• Familiarity with health risk assessment (HRA), environmental justice (EJ), cumulative impact assessment, and GHG-related modeling applications.

• Experience working on complex industrial projects across multiple sectors and jurisdictions, specifically US and EMEA related experience.

• Experience collaborating with global project teams and technical subject matter experts.

• Professional certifications or advanced training in environmental modeling, atmospheric sciences, and/or programming.

Key responsibilities

• Serve as a technical resource for small-to-medium complex air dispersion modeling studies using approved regulatory and non-regulatory models such as AERMOD, CALPUFF, AERSCREEN, and other tools to support permitting, compliance, and impact assessment projects.

• Perform air dispersion modeling using regulatory models and approved methodologies, and modeling guidance across multiple jurisdictions and integrate regulatory expectations into project execution.

• Prepare and review emissions inventories, source characterization data, meteorological datasets, receptor grids, and model inputs to ensure technically defensible analyses. 

• Prepare development of modeling protocols, high-quality technical reports, regulatory submissions, and permit applications. 

• Partner with global project managers and regional technical teams across North America and EMEA to support efficient and consistent project delivery.

• Support proposal development by preparing technical research, effort estimates, modeling methodologies, contribute expert opinion in discussions, and project planning. 

• Develop and improve modeling tools, templates, SOPs, and automation/technical workflows, guidance to improve delivery efficiency, consistency, and technical excellence. 

• Mentor junior team members and contribute to technical capability building through training, coaching, peer reviews, knowledge-sharing, and onboarding initiatives.

• Perform and manage multiple tasks within scope/budget/schedule expectations and ensure quality standards on project deliverables.

• Provide technical review and sign-off support for modeling analyses performed by other team members.