West Coast Fish Passage and Hydropower Specialist

Entarian•Portland, OR

19h•$74,000 - $94,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Entarian is seeking a West Coast Fish Passage and Hydropower Specialist to provide technical, programmatic, data management, environmental compliance, outreach, and restoration planning support for the NOAA Office of Habitat Conservation, Restoration Center. This position will support habitat restoration projects and related NOAA programs and initiatives in the West Coast region, with an emphasis on fish passage, hydropower projects, and related regulatory processes.

Requirements

Master’s degree focused on water resources, natural resources, environmental science, fisheries, biology, or a related field, with a minimum of four years of specialized professional experience in applicable field activities, methods, and practices.
Three to five years of relevant experience working with hydropower projects or related regulatory processes in the West Coast region.
Demonstrated knowledge of fish behavior and fish passage principles.
Experience working with federal and/or state agencies.
Knowledge of biological sciences and techniques pertaining to ecology, marine and anadromous fisheries, offshore and coastal aquatic habitat, invasive species, and biological resources of the West Coast region.
Previous restoration project experience demonstrating knowledge of wetland restoration, fish passage techniques, and the application of ecological principles to habitat restoration.
Demonstrated ability to perform field monitoring and habitat assessment activities to identify and evaluate habitat restoration projects.
Knowledge of federal, state, and local regulations related to living marine resources and habitat restoration projects.
Familiarity with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.
Strong organizational and project management skills, including project scheduling, budgeting, tracking, reporting, and handling multiple concurrent and competing responsibilities.
Experience with government document retention requirements.
Experience working in a litigation-sensitive environment.
Strong oral and written communication skills.
Ability to work independently; reliable, self-starter, self-motivated, and detail oriented.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office Applications, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, as well as routine computer use including email, electronic file management, and calendaring.
Willingness for occasional travel throughout the West Coast region.
Must be a U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident and be able to pass a background investigation to obtain a security badge to access applicable government systems and facilities.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with the Federal Power Act (FPA), Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) processes, and hydropower licensing.
Experience with Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), and the Oil Pollution Act (OPA).
Public speaking and technical writing skills and experience.
Experience working in a government office.
Experience with restoration project databases such as RCDB and DARRTS.

Responsibilities

Support fishery habitat restoration planning and implementation, including the evaluation, identification, prioritization, design, implementation, and monitoring of restoration projects, with particular emphasis on fish behavior, fish passage, hydropower projects, and aquatic habitat in the West Coast region.
Provide technical and programmatic support for CRP and DARRP restoration projects, including coordination with NOAA staff, local partners, state and federal trustees, responsible parties, technical professionals, and other stakeholders to support project development, implementation planning, monitoring, adaptive management, and reporting.
Support project solicitation, review, and tracking activities, including distribution of requests for proposals, review and scoring of proposals, participation in technical review discussions, development of monitoring plans, participation in implementation planning, review of progress reports, and tracking of project accomplishments.
Provide technical management and oversight of trustee or responsible-party restoration projects, including coordination of draft restoration plans, assessment reports, environmental compliance documents, monitoring and evaluation plans, permit requests, project budgets, adaptive management plans, and restoration scaling activities.
Support Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA) planning and stewardship activities, including gathering information from state and federal trustees, supporting case strategy and decisions through literature and expert-opinion research, preparing topic papers, supporting use of settlement funds, and applying an integrated watershed-based approach to restoration portfolios.
Provide programmatic management support by coordinating and inspecting field activities and contract deliverables; supporting subcontractor oversight; identifying potential contract deviations; and providing technical input to the NOAA Project Lead and COR without exercising technical direction or final contract acceptance authority.
Develop and support environmental compliance documentation and permitting, including NEPA documentation using established NOAA and CEQ methods and guidance; Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act; and documentation needed to support compliance with applicable federal, state, and local requirements, including the Endangered Species Act and Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.
Develop outreach and communication products, including draft press releases, project fact sheets, briefing packets, maps, story maps, and other materials; and support public meetings, events, and other outreach activities as needed.
Perform data management and reporting activities, including compiling and inputting project data into the Restoration and Conservation Database (RCDB), DARRTS, and other reporting databases; coordinating information requests; and working with the IT team on potential process improvements.
Provide subject matter expert support to other NOAA programs and initiatives, including independent environmental resource and management studies, meeting participation and reporting, document development, engagement with topic experts, and literature reviews.
Periodic on-site meetings in the Portland, OR office and regional site visits and meetings with partners throughout the West Coast region are required, with regular off-site work acceptable. The contractor may be required to travel for meetings, workshops, trainings, and conferences.

Benefits

Medical, Rx, Dental, and Vision Insurance
401(k) retirement plan with company-matching
11 Paid Federal Government Holidays
Paid Time Off (PTO)
Basic Life & Supplemental Life
Health Savings Account, Flexible Spending and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts
Short-Term & Long-Term Disability
Employee assistance program (EAP)
Tuition Reimbursement, Personal Development & Learning Opportunities
Skills Development & Certifications
Professional Membership Reimbursement
Employee Referral Program
Competitive compensation plan
Discretionary variable incentive bonuses based on factors such as individual performance, business unit performance, and/or the company’s performance