Coastal Engineer – Project Level

Natural Systems Design • Seattle, WA

1d • $110,000 - $115,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

Natural Systems Design (NSD), a Washington-based environmental services and consulting firm, is seeking a full-time Project Level Coastal Engineer. The firm has more than 50 interdisciplinary staff and offices in Seattle, Bellingham, and Port Angeles. The role is suited to an engineer with typically 5–10 years of experience and strong proficiency in engineering analysis and design for beaches, nearshore ecosystems, coasts, estuaries, and developed waterfronts.

The position may be based in Seattle, Bellingham, or Port Angeles, Washington, and/or performed in a hybrid arrangement. NSD currently uses a hybrid in-office and remote model, with flexibility for staff to choose when they work from the office or home. The preferred candidate is near one of the offices and within commuting distance of Puget Sound field work.

The engineer will contribute to coastal restoration and enhancement projects, applying nature-based approaches and producing analysis, designs, specifications, reports, and other technical deliverables. The role involves project-team and client collaboration, project management, and delivery of work on schedule and within budget. The start date is flexible and will be negotiated with the selected candidate.

NSD describes its work as exclusively advancing aquatic and floodplain habitat restoration and watershed resiliency through applied science, analysis, planning, design, and monitoring, with climate-change risk and resiliency integrated throughout. The firm emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration, environmental and community benefit, inclusive culture, flexibility, professional growth, and innovative, high-quality work.

Requirements

• At least 5 years of professional experience working on coastal engineering and restoration projects, including some consulting services.
• Current Washington State Professional Engineer (PE) registration, or ability to obtain registration through reciprocity within 6 months of hire.
• Bachelor of Science in coastal, civil, or ocean engineering, or a directly related discipline.
• Ability to complete site investigations and field measurements at coastal sites.
• Proficiency in coastal process analysis, design plans, and specification development.
• Strong technical writing and communication skills, including effective client and agency presentations that convey complex engineering concepts.
• Ability to serve as project manager on coastal restoration projects.
• Experience with coastal-flooding risk analysis and sea-level-rise resilience and adaptation approaches.
• Understanding of coastal modeling, such as wave and/or sediment-transport modeling using Delft3D, SWAN, XBEACH, CMS-Wave, or similar programs.
• Familiarity with the Coastal Engineering Manual and other coastal design guidelines and standards.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, and proficiency with data-analysis packages and software such as R, CEM, ACES-CDAS, Excel spreadsheets, Visual Basic, MATLAB, or other programming languages for automating data processing, analysis, and engineering calculations.
• Track record of successful project delivery on budget and on time.
• Legally authorized to work in the United States on an ongoing basis without sponsorship.
• Valid driver’s license.

Nice To Haves

• Coastal engineering experience in Puget Sound.
• Advanced degree in coastal, civil, or ocean engineering, oceanography, or a related discipline.
• Familiarity with gravel and mixed gravel-sand beach dynamics and beach design.
• Experience with engineering-with-nature, nature-based design, living shorelines, and habitat-enhancement project design.
• Proficiency in analyzing aerial imagery and other coastal mapping and LiDAR data.
• Proficiency in developing design concepts and alternatives using AutoCAD or other drafting software.
• Proficiency with the ArcGIS platform, including acquiring and importing geospatial and remote-sensing data and performing geospatial analysis.
• Demonstrated understanding of and sensitivity to diverse perspectives on relationships and interconnections with the natural world and traditional cultures, such as Tribal Ecological Knowledge.

Responsibilities

• Design and analyze engineering approaches to restore and enhance natural coastal and estuarine ecosystems using nature-based approaches.
• Perform coastal design involving structures, beach nourishment, inlet processes, and related topics.
• Conduct site condition assessments, alternatives analyses, and feasibility studies.
• Perform sea-level-rise and climate-change vulnerability analyses and develop adaptation designs.
• Prepare engineering plan sheets in AutoCAD, including grading plans, coastal-structure layouts, cross-sections, and design details.
• Calculate material, construction, earthwork quantities, and impact areas to support permitting, cost estimates, and bid schedules.
• Develop project specifications in accordance with client and industry guidelines.
• Write technical narratives and reports describing methodologies, analysis results, and design elements; support illustrative figures and maps using Autodesk, ArcGIS Pro, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Support engineering and scientific investigations, including regional restoration project site analyses and related studies.
• Identify and apply the best available science to develop innovative, cost-effective approaches and engineering solutions that meet project goals.
• Communicate and contribute actively within project teams; develop design deliverables on time and within budget; maintain and track project schedules; and communicate project status and results to colleagues, collaborators, and clients through discussions, presentations, data visualizations, and technical writing.
• Serve as a project manager for coastal restoration projects.
• Complete site investigations and field measurements at coastal sites.
• Conduct effective client and agency presentations and communicate complex engineering concepts through technical writing and other communications.

Benefits

• Up to a 4% match on 401(k).
• Seven paid holidays plus a day of service.
• Four weeks of paid time off accrued annually.
• Additional hours worked beyond 40 hours are compensated at a 1.5x hourly rate; staff may also work less than a 40-hour week when needed.
• Flexible scheduling and hybrid work, with autonomy to choose office and remote work days.
• Support for professional growth in technical and soft skills, leadership opportunities, and career advancement.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level