Principal Sustainability Specialist

About the Role

Join one of the transportation sector’s most diverse and innovative engineering teams.  The Port Authority’s airports, ports, ferries, tunnels, bridges, bus terminals and rail transportation systems are among the region’s most important transportation facilities.  As the first U.S. transportation agency to set a Net Zero goal for all greenhouse gas emissions, the Port Authority is pursuing a variety of ambitious decarbonization and climate resilience initiatives.

Reporting to the Senior Program Manager, Sustainable Design and Construction, the Principal Sustainability Specialist (“Specialist”), EWR Redevelopment (Sustainable Design & Construction) will serve as the primary Point of Contact for all RSE coordination with the ongoing Newark Liberty International Airport Redevelopment (EWRR) program.

The Specialist’s duties will also encompass Tenant Alteration Application (TAA) reviews to ensure compliance with the Port Authority Sustainable Building Guidelines.  Port Authority tenants cover a wide variety of occupancy types including retail, hospitality, commercial offices, airport terminals and lounges, aviation hangars, transportation terminals, warehouses, operations centers, and substations.  The Specialist will also serve as Subject Matter Expert, task lead, or project manager for a portfolio of PA Capital Projects, initiatives, pilots, guideline/standard updates, and more. 

Responsibilities

The Specialist’s duties may include, but are not limited to:

• Meet the in-office compliance requirement (majority of the days in the office).
• Represent RSE in all matters pertaining to EWRR, including development of design requirements, review of multidisciplinary design packages and resolution of comments, technical collaboration with EWRR and business partner staff, and proactive communication between all parties.
• Perform deadline-driven technical audit and review services for sustainable design and construction, including analyzing and reviewing drawings, calculations, specifications, LEED documentation, reports and studies for compliance with PA standards, and preparation of review comments.
• Work with agency design teams, consultants, and tenants and their design teams (Architects/Engineers of Record) to successfully implement the agency’s Sustainable Design Guidelines and related standards, which may include meeting with internal and external partners to provide project-specific guidance, discussing review comments, and resolving issues constructively and in a timely manner.
• Track project status and performance metrics; reporting out at bi-monthly meetings and contributing to unit performance reports.
• Support updates to the Authority's guidelines, manuals, bulletins, specifications, and implementation tools for sustainable and resilient design and construction.   
• Coordinate with all PA Engineering Divisions, EWRR, Line Departments, facility Tenant Liaison Offices, Tenant Construction Alteration Process (TCAP) Central Office, Law, and Real Estate to ensure that PA standards are incorporated into the Tenant Construction Alteration Process and Tenant Construction Review Manual, with particular focus on:
  • Su