As a Principal Environmental Consultant in Grontmij’s Scottish brownfield remediation team, Alan's role involves him in large scale national and local projects at all levels from initial bids through to project closure. His responsibilities include environmental assessment, remediation strategy development and implementation, work winning and client management, regulatory liaison, management of health and safety, and waste classification and management.
The trajectory leading up to Grontmij has been diverse and often challenging. A geoscientist with a Degree from the University of Edinburgh, his career began in oil and gas exploration, in offshore and onshore technical specialisms. His first steps away from the oil industry were with Atkins in their land survey team in Essex, where he worked across the business from roads schemes to waste management and flood prevention projects and then subsequently with BT. A decision in 2003 to refocus his career led to a Master Degree at Cranfield University in Land Reclamation and Restoration. Alan worked at a number of consultancies, but the lure of higher profile projects tempted him to Grontmij.
Alan chose the IES because:
After a number of years with other institutions as it offered the best fit to the kind of work I do, and the interests I have. I feel that the values of the IES align closely with my own with regard to the promotion of high quality environmental science, and enjoy feeling part of a like-minded community of scientists and other professionals. The IES offers me a level of support which I couldn’t find elsewhere, both technically through their links with academia and industry and the excellent and informative ‘environmental SCIENTIST’, and professionally through their Chartership schemes, and advice and direction towards achieving professional recognition.
By far his favourite aspect of his work is the constant variety: his role can sometimes be reactive, dealing with sudden issues on client sites and providing technical and regulatory support to help them deal with problems ranging from asbestos discoveries in demolitions to enforcement action by the environmental regulators; while at other times he can be closely involved in longer-term planning and implementation of environmental improvement schemes.
His job has taken him all over the UK, from remote highland villages to huge industrial developments in the heart of England, and further afield from the forests of northern Scandinavia to the tunnels beneath Gibraltar.
In the future Alan sees himself developing into new areas, particularly into alternative energy as part of the solution to our future resource needs. He also intends to keep raising his professional recognition with a focus on achieving Fellowship of the IES.
