Business: Regional Enviroscience, Dubbo


Building a strong workforce from the ground up with a particular emphasis on encouraging young people into the fields of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) has been a major focus for Regional Enviroscience.

Established nine years ago by Juliet Duffy from her rental property garage, the business has really thrived and now employs 23 local people including four female graduate scientists.

There are also offices in Wagga Wagga, Orange, Tamworth and Maroochydore along with the head office in Dubbo.

The main purpose of Enviroscience is protecting the health of people and the environment through detection and monitoring of a range of contaminants in the air, water, soil and materials including asbestos, pollution incidents and meth lab clean-ups. The company works with local, state and federal government, civil and mining contractors, builders, developers and real estate agents.

Being regionally-based helps the company understand the uniqueness of the natural environment, infrastructure and communities.  Living in the towns where they work assists the team with forging local connections and to receive the necessary support to get the job done quickly and efficiently. Recognition of their innovative approach to meeting legislative and safety requirements has also amplified growth.

As a business leader, Juliet has received widespread recognition.  She has been named in the list of 100 Women of Influence, is the 2018 Regional Woman of the Year for NSW and Regional Enviroscience was named in the Australian Financial Review Fast 100 in 2017.

Juliet also speaks at many industry conferences and works with government organisations to educate them on the dangers and management of contaminants.

In this regard, she hopes that her business success can contribute to breaking down the false perception that being a regionally-based organisation led by a woman is any kind of barrier.