Principal Wastewater Engineer

The Principal Wastewater Engineer provides enterprise-wide technical leadership, strategic planning, and operational support for wastewater treatment systems across Land O'Lakes business units. This role is responsible for ensuring regulatory compliance, optimizing treatment system performance, mitigating long-term wastewater risks, supporting capital projects, and advancing corporate wastewater management strategies that promote safe, reliable, and compliant operations.

Position Purpose:

Are you passionate about solving complex environmental and wastewater challenges while influencing operations across an entire manufacturing network? If so, a career as a Principal Wastewater Engineer may be the right fit for you.

As a key member of the Corporate Environmental Health & Safety team, this role serves as the company's technical wastewater expert, partnering with plant operations, engineering, environmental professionals, regulators, consultants, and business leaders to ensure wastewater treatment systems operate efficiently, sustainably, and in full compliance with regulatory requirements. This position is based in Arden Hills, MN and requires approximately 50% travel to Land O'Lakes facilities.

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide technical leadership and support for wastewater treatment operations across multiple manufacturing facilities.

• Ensure compliance with wastewater permits, discharge agreements, sludge management requirements, and environmental regulations.

• Establish and manage wastewater performance metrics, scorecards, reporting systems, and leading indicators.

• Develop and maintain wastewater operational standards, SOPs, playbooks, best practices, and emergency response procedures.

• Analyze operational and laboratory data to identify trends, optimize process performance, and proactively address treatment challenges.

• Provide onsite technical support during wastewater treatment upsets and lead root cause investigations.

• Support wastewater-related capital projects including design review, construction, startup, commissioning, and training.

• Develop and implement Wastewater Management of Change (WWMOC) processes.

• Identify long-term wastewater treatment capacity constraints, compliance risks, and improvement opportunities.

• Develop and deliver wastewater training programs and facilitate network-wide operator meetings.

Required Experience & Education:

• Bachelor's degree in Environmental, Chemical, Civil Engineering, Environmental Science, or related field.

• 7+ years of industrial wastewater treatment experience.

• Food, dairy, agricultural, or industrial manufacturing experience.

• Experience supporting multi-site or corporate environmental programs.

• Experience with WWTP operations, optimization, and capital projects.

Required Competencies & Other Skills:

• Strong technical expertise in industrial wastewater treatment and environmental regulations.

• Strong data analysis and problem-solving skills.

• Excellent project management and communication skills.

• Ability to influence and collaborate across multiple stakeholders.

• Strategic thinking and risk management capabilities.

Preferred Experience:

• Master's degree in related discipline.

• Knowledge of POTW discharge programs and high-strength waste management.

• PE license or wastewater operator certifications.

Salary Range: $107,680 - $161,520. In most cases, candidates offered employment expect to be hired at a pay rate near the middle of our salary ranges.

About Land O'Lakes, Inc.

Join us and be part of a Fortune 250, farmer- and member-owned cooperative that is reimagining the business of food. We have been named a Top Workplace by Indeed and LinkedIn, and to the TIME 100 Most Influential Companies list.

Benefits for most full-time roles include medical, dental, vision, PTO, life & disability insurance, education assistance, a 401k and a variety of well-being resources. Most part-time employees are eligible for prorated PTO, holiday pay, employee development programs, prorated education assistance, and a 401(k).

Land O'Lakes, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) M/F/Vets/Disabled. The company maintains a drug-free workforce, including post-employment substance abuse testing pursuant to a Drug and Alcohol Policy.

Neither Land O’Lakes, nor its search firms, will ever contact you and ask for confidential information over the phone or in email. If you receive a call or email like this, please do not provide the information being requested. 

Land O'Lakes does not use Automated Decision-Making Technology, as defined by California law, to substantially replace human decision-making or make significant decisions about applications for employment or contracting opportunities.