Also called: Amphibious Excavator Operator, Swamp Buggy Operator
Runs excavators on giant floating pontoon tracks that crawl through swamps and marshes for coastal restoration, pipelines and levees.
In a Louisiana marsh you steer an excavator on pontoon tracks through knee-deep mud and water. You dig channels and build up land for a wetland restoration project while watching for alligators.
Estimated; Gulf Coast operators with overtime.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
High school diploma, about 1 year after high school. High school plus on-the-job heavy equipment training.
Ways in: On-the-job training, Apprenticeship. Training cost: Get paid while you train.
Majors to look at: Heavy Equipment Operations.
Growing faster than average. Gulf Coast restoration and levee projects are expanding.
Low risk for 10 years. Soft, changing marsh ground needs a skilled human at the controls.
Classes: Ag mechanics, Earth science, Auto or small engines.
Official data: O*NET occupation 47-2073.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.