Principal Environmental Scientist

What You Will Do: GFT is seeking a Principal Environmental Scientist to join our growing Environmental Practice! This role follows a hybrid work model, requiring regular attendance at our Columbus, OH location. GFT's Environmental team delivers integrated planning, permitting, and compliance solutions that support infrastructure development across North America. With more than 140 professionals in 22 offices, the team guides clients through NEPA andpermittingprocesses, ecological and regulatory assessments, and environmental remediation efforts. Theirexpertisespans transportation, power, water, and facilities markets - working alongside agencies at federal, state, and local levels. From stream restoration to complex environmental impact statements, GFT helps clients protect resources, manage risk, and meet regulatory requirements with confidence. What you'll be challenged to do: As a Principal Environmental Scientist, you will serve as a project-level environmental lead for transportation infrastructure projects throughout Ohio, with responsibility for managing environmental scopes, coordinating regulatory compliance, and delivering high-quality environmental documentation and permits. The role focuses on NEPA compliance, natural resources, protected species and habitat considerations for complex transportation projects including rail, transit, roadway, bridge, and transportation facilities. This position requires an experienced practitioner who can independently manage small to mid-sized environmental projects, interface directly with transportation agencies and regulators, and integrate environmental requirements into planning, design, and construction. In this capacity, the successful candidate will be responsible for the following: - Lead, conduct, and review natural resource baseline inventories and impact assessments for transportation corridors and facilities, including effects to wetlands, waterways, wildlife habitat, and threatened and endangered species. - Prepare and manage permitting and compliance efforts under Clean Water Act Sections 401/404, Endangered Species Act (Section 7), and applicable Ohio and local permits. - Oversee field investigations such as wetland delineations, habitat assessments, and species surveys, including coordination of subconsultants. - Track environmental commitments and mitigation measures and support their integration into design documents and construction-phase activities. - Serve as the environmental task lead or project environmental lead for transportation projects, responsible for scope definition, schedule adherence, budget management, team collaboration, and deliverable quality. - Manage environmental components of transportation projects subject to NEPA, including joint federal-state review processes. - Coordinate and oversee preparation of Categorical Exclusions (CEs), Environmental Assessments (EAs), Environmental Impact Statements (EISs), and supporting technical studies. - Act as a primary environmental point of contact with transportation owners and agencies, including ODOT, FHWA, FTA, USACE, and USFWS. - Support coordination with municipalities, tribal entities, and other stakeholders as required for transportation environmental review and permitting. - Prepare and lead agency coordination materials, technical correspondence, and meetings. - Provide day-to-day technical direction to junior and mid-level environmental staff and review their work for quality and regulatory compliance. - Perform QA/QC reviews of environmental documents to ensure defensibility, consistency, and adherence to agency requirements. - Contribute project-level input to proposals, scopes of work, staffing plans, and cost estimates for transportation pursuits. Education | Experience