New South Wales and Queensland are joint leaders as the top two states for green job ads but their growth numbers of around 8% since May 2011 can’t match those of WA.

Peter Hooper, managing director of GreenCollar Talent, which publishes the GreenJob Index, says he’s seeing an upswing in green jobs everywhere but particularly in WA.

“Although conventional wisdom suggests that traditional green jobs aren’t compatible with mining, oil and gas, we think the growth in WA, especially in areas like compliance, represents recognition of the need to mine our countries’ resources in an environmentally sensitive and efficient way,” Hooper said.

“It also demonstrates the role these kinds of jobs play in cutting costs.

"In the current cautious economic climate we see this as evidence of the inroads sustainability has made as a legitimate business value for the all types of organisations.”

New South Wales and Queensland have the largest number of open positions that meet the green job criteria – that of a having a positive outcome for the environment. Both states have 26% of all green jobs being advertised Australia-wide. Victoria follows in third position with 22% of green jobs. WA holds fourth position with 16%.

“It’ll come as no surprise that our Perth office is showing demand for those with skills in carbon reduction. Environmental management specialists are also high on the wish list in WA as attempts are made to balance the effects of mining within the natural environment,” Hooper said.

“Australia-wide there is growing demand for green engineer positions in the public and private sector, as well as positions related to the collection and analysis of environmental impact data.”

“More and more companies are focusing on sustainable practices as a business value and there is Australia-wide demand for those with sustainability experience. Some of the most interesting jobs are in the sustainability management field. Companies need someone to oversee and implement their sustainability initiatives across all areas of their organisation.

"What’s important for these roles is a business background, combined with the technical skills and knowledge of these cutting-edge business practices, as well as the ability to lead and manage projects and communicate the sustainability ideals to all internal and external company stakeholders.”

This article first appeared in BEN-Global