Hazardous Materials Removal Workers
Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources · Environmental Service Systems
Pay and outlook shown for
New workers start near $35,360; experienced workers reach $56,170. About 290 people do this job in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX.
Job outlook
Alamo region (San Antonio and 12 surrounding counties), Texas Workforce Commission projection 2024 to 2034; U.S. figures from the BLS.
- Employment change
- +40.6%
- Openings a year
- 30
- Employed in 2024
- 192
Typical entry education: High school diploma or equivalent · Training: Moderate-term on-the-job training
Alamo Colleges programs that lead here
No program is mapped to this career yet. Many careers start from a transfer pre-major or a related program.
Browse all programsSkills this career uses
The skills O*NET rates most important for the job, with how much of each the work needs on a 1 to 7 scale.
- Monitoring3.1
- Critical Thinking3.6
- Operation and Control3.0
- Active Listening3.0
- Operations Monitoring3.0
- Reading Comprehension3.0
- Speaking2.9
- Active Learning3.0
What the work is
Identify, remove, pack, transport, or dispose of hazardous materials, including asbestos, lead-based paint, waste oil, fuel, transmission fluid, radioactive materials, or contaminated soil. Specialized training and certification in hazardous materials handling or a confined entry permit are generally required. May operate earth-moving equipment or trucks.
- Comply with prescribed safety procedures or federal laws regulating waste disposal methods.
- Operate machines or equipment to remove, package, store, or transport loads of waste materials.
- Load or unload materials into containers or onto trucks, using hoists or forklifts.
- Clean contaminated equipment or areas for reuse, using detergents or solvents, sandblasters, filter pumps, or steam cleaners.
- Remove asbestos or lead from surfaces, using hand or power tools such as scrapers, vacuums, or high-pressure sprayers.
- Identify asbestos, lead, or other hazardous materials to be removed, using monitoring devices.
Education people in this job have
Share of workers by highest education, from O*NET surveys. It shows what others did, not what you must do.
- High school or less51%
- Certificate20%
- Some college14%
- Associate degree2%
- Bachelor's degree14%
Job zone 3, medium preparation: Training, an associate degree, or a few years of related experience.
Similar careers
Does this fit you?
Six questions rank every career here by how closely its interest profile follows yours.
Check my interests