The Restoration Biologist will support the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Habitat Conservation (OHC) Restoration Center (RC) in Seattle, WA. Regular remote work is permissible with periodic in-person meetings in Seattle, WA office and regional site visits.

Duties include:

Fishery Habitat Restoration: Will assist the RC in evaluation, identification, prioritization, implementation and monitoring of habitat restoration projects. This will require on-going contact with local partners, technical review of project proposals, developing monitoring plans, tracking of project progress, and reporting of project accomplishments. This will also entail providing oversight of field activities and sub-contractors including inspection of contract deliverables and coordination of field-activities.

Data Management: Will maintain and input specific restoration project data, including managing the use of the RIBITS database for DARRP cases.

Program Support: will support of other NOAA programs or initiatives including regional and national efforts to develop monitoring parameters and geographic prioritization species/habitat recovery. This will require regular attendance, observation and reporting on meetings, development of content for documents, discussions with and collection of feedback from topic experts, and literature reviews

Environmental Compliance: Will support development of applicable permits and appropriate National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) environmental compliance documentation (i.e., Categorical Exclusions (CATEX), Environmental Assessments (EA), tiered to Programmatic Environmental Impacts Statement (EIS)) through established NOAA and CEQ methods, procedures and guidance. Will coordinate with the NOAA General Counsel for Natural Resources (GCNR) and applicable regulatory agencies (NOAA, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Army Corps of Engineers, Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP), state and other agencies) in the drafting of appropriate permit and consultation requests to ensure compliance with applicable federal, state and local regulations.

Outreach: Will support coordination of public meetings, press releases, events and other outreach activities and products. This will include preparing draft press releases, project fact sheets, and briefing packets for selected products and restoration projects as well as observation and participation in public meetings.

Requirements

• Minimum of 8-10 years’ professional experience in applicable field activities, methods and practices.
• Knowledge of biological sciences and techniques pertaining to ecology, marine and anadromous fisheries, offshore and coastal aquatic habitat and invasive species.
• Previous experience with work on restoration projects that demonstrate the knowledge of wetland restoration, fish passage techniques, and the ability to apply ecological principles to habitat restoration.
• Knowledge of federal, state and local regulations related to living marine resources and habitat restoration projects such as the Clean Water Act (CWA), Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) guidelines, Estuary Restoration Act (ERA), Endangered Species Act (ESA), Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA), and Sec 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA).
• Knowledge of the habitats and resources of the Northwest Region.
• Ability to perform field monitoring and habitat assessment activities to identify and evaluate habitat restoration projects.
• Strong project management skills including project scheduling, budgeting, and ability to handle multiple, concurrent, and competing projects and responsibilities.
• Strong communication skills, both oral and written.
• Experience with government document retention requirements.
• Experience working in a litigation sensitive environment.
• Ability to work independently, reliable, self-starter, self-motivated and strong attention to detail.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Willingness for occasional travel within a region.

Desired

• Experience with Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA), Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), and Oil Pollution Act (OPA).
• Public speaking and technical writing skills and experience.
• Experience working in a government office.

Must be a US Citizen or Permanent Resident and be able to pass a background investigation to obtain a security badge to access the applicable government facility/systems.

Education

Master’s Degree in coastal or aquatic sciences, fishery biology, fish ecology, hydrology, water resources or a related field or equivalent; additional experience may substitute for degree

ERT is a VEVRAA Federal Contractor and Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer - All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or protected Veteran status.

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