Salary 
$55,872.00 – $73,260.00 Annually
Location 
Yakima County – Union Gap, WA
Job Type
Full Time – Permanent
Remote Employment
Flexible/Hybrid
Department
Dept. of Ecology
Job Number
2022-WQ3859-16146
 
Closing
Continuous
Description
 
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Per Governor Inslee’s Directive 22-13.1, state employees must be fully vaccinated effective November 4, 2022. Providing proof of being fully vaccinated is a condition of employment and your vaccine status will be verified prior to starting work. Being fully vaccinated means two weeks after you have received the second dose in a two-dose series of a COVID-19 vaccine or a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine authorized for emergency use, licensed or otherwise authorized or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or listed for emergency use or otherwise approved by the World Health Organization. If you have questions, please contact Careers@ecy.wa.gov with “COVID-19 vaccination” in the subject line.  


Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen

The Water Quality program within the Department of Ecology is looking to fill a Lead Permit Developer/Facility Manager (Environmental Specialist 4) position. 

This position is located in our Central Region Office (CRO) in Union Gap, WA.
 
Upon hire, you must live within a commutable distance from the duty station.

In this position you will help protect and restore Central Washington’s water quality. 
You will develop and oversee National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) and/or State Waste Discharge Permits (SWDPs) to ensure that wastewater discharges are managed to protect and restore water quality. This position works with engineers, environmental specialists and scientists within the Ecology Water Quality Program, as well as other Ecology programs and agencies.  You will work closely with licensed professional engineers to review engineering reports for process wastewater treatment processes.

The mission of the Water Quality Program is to protect and restore Washington’s waters to support healthy watersheds and communities. Our work ensures state waters can support beneficial uses including recreational and business activities, supplies for clean drinking water, and the protection of fish, shellfish, wildlife, and public health.      

During Healthy Washington Roadmap to Recovery, employees are working a combination of in-office and/or telework based on position and business need. This position is not currently required to work in the office on a regular basis. Ecology is following current state guidance regarding mask requirements, health screening questions before entry, and social distancing. Looking ahead, Ecology has recently updated the agency policies on telework and flexible and compressed work schedules. Applicants with questions about position location options, telework, and flexible or compressed schedules are encouraged to reach out to the contact person listed below in “other information.” 
 
Application Timeline: This position will remain open until filled, with an initial screening date of December 14, 2022. In order to be considered for initial screening, please submit an application on or before December 13, 2022. The agency reserves the right to make an appointment any time after the initial screening date.


About the Department of Ecology

Protecting Washington State’s environment for current and future generations is what we do every day at Ecology. We are a culture that is invested in making a difference. Join a team that is highly effective and collaborative, with leadership that embraces the value of people. To learn more, check out our Strategic Plan

Ecology cares deeply about employee wellness; we go beyond traditional benefits, proudly offering:

  • A healthy life/work balance by offering flexible schedules and telework options for most positions.
  • An Infants at Work Program that is based on the long-term health values of infant-parent bonding and breastfeeding newborns.
  • Continuous growth and development opportunities. 
  • A wellness program that offers education, fitness classes, and an agency-wide fondness for outdoor meetings.
  • Opportunities to serve your community and make an impact through meaningful work.

Our commitment to DEIR
Diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect (DEIR) 
are core values central to Ecology’s work. We strive to be a workplace where we are esteemed for sharing our authentic identities, while advancing our individual professional goals and collaborating to protect, preserve, and enhance the environment for current and future generations.

 
Diversity: We celebrate and appreciate diversity; our unique perspectives and abilities enrich us all and lead to innovative approaches and solutions.
 
Equity: We champion equity, recognizing that each of us need different things to thrive.
 
Inclusion: We intentionally create and hold space so that we all have meaningful opportunities to participate and contribute to Ecology’s work.
 
Respect: We treat each other with respect and dignity, acknowledging the inherent worth of our diverse perspectives and lived experiences, even in times of uncertainty and disagreement.
 
We believe that DEIR is both a goal and an action. We are on a journey, honoring our shared humanity and taking steps to demonstrate our commitment to a vision where each of us is heard, seen, and valued. 

 

 

Duties

 

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What makes this role unique?
You will serve as CRO’s technical unit lead in permit development working closely with permit developers/permit managers in the drafting of technical fact sheets and permits. You’ll also serve as the CRO technical unit permitting representative on Ecology’s Water Quality Permit Writer’s Workgroup. As the representative on this workgroup, you’ll propose enhancements to shell language, improvements to permit writing tools, and procedures that will increase permit consistency and defensibility. As the lead you’ll also assist regional staff with inspection activities and be a resource to staff when they have permitting questions, need technical assistance, or are seeking funding options to make critical and important upgrades at permitted facilities. The efforts you provide will bring comprehensive compliance inspections, defensible permits, and coordination of permitting and improvements to individual facilities in the region.
 
 

 What you will do: 
  • Prepare fact sheets and draft permits for peer, permittee, and public review.
  • Provides technical assistance to permittees and other affected entities and individuals to achieve compliance.
  • Mentoring and assisting junior staff of permitting activities.
  • Perform statistical analyses on data from wastewater monitoring and receiving waters.
  • Travel within Ecology’s Central Regional Office (CRO) geographic area to perform site inspections, conduct fieldwork, and occasional water quality sampling.
  • Attend trainings that will help develop skill sets.
Initiates recommendations for enforcement actions to achieve compliance with applicable water quality laws and regulations.

 

Qualifications

 

Required Qualifications:
Experience for both required and desired qualifications can be gained through various combinations of formal professional employment, educational and volunteer experience. See below for how you may qualify.

Option 1:
Nine (9) years of combined experience and/ or education: 
  • Education: Involving major study in environmental, physical, or one of the natural sciences, environmental planning or other allied science field.
  • Experience: In environmental analysis or control or environmental planning. One (1) year of the total required experience Must include municipal and industrial wastewater treatment.
Experience may include a combination of the following:
  • Performing field surveys or studies.
  • Responding to complaints involving scientific or technical content
  • Preparing public meetings and hearings.
  • Assistance with routine inspections or investigations requiring specialized knowledge of industry processes, pollutant sources or natural processes.
  • Responding to routine inquiries or request for technical assistance involving scientific content.
  • Conducting routing sampling and testing analyses, interprets data, writing reports.
  • Providing routine environmental technical and administrative assistance to grant/contract/loan recipients of environmental protection projects.
  • Investigating and or resolving complaints involving science or technology content.
  • Performing inspections.
  • Drafting technical evaluations and reports.
  • Develops plans for researching information used for technical projects, regulatory or policy development.
  • Plan and facilitate public meetings and hearings.
  • Project work requiring specialized knowledge of industry processes, pollutant sources or natural processes.
  • Providing technical assistance for complex scientific content and/ or support for implementing scientific content programs.
  • Conducting tests, analyzing and evaluating data
  • Using environmental databases to support technical projects
  • Developing scientific studies and resource management plans
  • Providing environmental technical and administrative assistance to grant/ contact/ loan recipients of environmental protection projects.
Option 2:
  • A Bachelor’s degree involving major study in environmental, physical, or one of the natural sciences, environmental planning or other allied field.
  • Five (5) years of professional-level experience in environmental analysis or control, or environmental planning, which may include experience as described in option 1. One (1) year of the total required experience Must include municipal and industrial wastewater treatment.
Option 3: 
  • A Master’s degree involving major study in environmental, physical, or one of the natural sciences, environmental planning or other allied field.
  • Three (3) years of professional-level experience in environmental analysis or control, or environmental planning, which may include experience as described in option 1. One (1) year of the total required experience Must include municipal and industrial wastewater treatment.
Option 4:
  • A PhD degree involving major study in environmental, physical, or one of the natural sciences, environmental planning or other allied field.
  • Two (2) years of professional-level experience in environmental analysis or control, or environmental planning, which may include experience as described in option 1. One (1) year of the total required experience Must include municipal and industrial wastewater treatment.
Option 5:
  • Two (2) years of experience as an Environmental Specialist 3 at the Department of Ecology. Experience Must include one (1) year in municipal and industrial wastewater treatment. 
 All experience and education combinations that meet the requirements for this position:
 
Possible Combinations College credit hours or degree Years of required experience
Combination 1 No college credit hours or degree 9 years of experience
Combination 2 30-59 semester or 45-89 quarter credits 8 years of experience
Combination 3 60-89 semester or 90-134 quarter credits (AA degree) 7 years of experience
Combination 4 90-119 semester or 135-179 quarter credits 6 years of experience
Combination 5  A Bachelor’s Degree 5 years of experience
Combination 6  A Master’s Degree 3 years of experience
Combination 7 A PhD 2 years of experience
 
 
Special Requirements/Conditions of Employment: 
  • Must possess and maintain a valid State’s driver’s license. 


Desired Qualifications:
We highly encourage you to apply even if you do not have some (or all) of the desired experience below.

  • Experience drafting fact sheet and permit documents
  • Experience working with environmental legislation and regulations at the deferral, state, and local level.
  • Experience reviewing and understanding complex technical documents and prepare enforcement documents.
  • Experience applying negotiation skills.
  • Experience appropriately maintaining data or inspection records.
Note: Having some (or all) of this desired experience may make your application more competitive in a highly competitive applicant pool.

 

Supplemental Information


Ecology seeks diverse applicants: We view diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect through a broad lens including race, ethnicity, class, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status, military background, language, education, life experience, physical disability, neurodiversity, and intersectional identities. Qualified candidates from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.


Need an Accommodation in the application and/or screening process or this job announcement in an alternative format?

  • Please call: (360) 407-6186 or email: careers@ecy.wa.gov and we will be happy to assist.
  • If you are deaf or hard of hearing you can reach the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.
  • If you need assistance applying for this job, please e-mail careers@ecy.wa.gov. Please do not send an email to this address to follow-up on the status of your application. You can view the latest status of your application on your profile’s main page.
  • If you are reading this announcement in print format, please enter the following URL to your search engine to apply: https://ecology.wa.gov/About-us/Get-to-know-us/Jobs-at-Ecology.   
Application Instructions:

It’s in the applicant’s best interest to submit all of the documents listed below. Applications without these documents may be declined.

  • A cover letter describing why you are interested in this position.
  • A resume outlining your experience and education (if applicable) as it relates to the minimum qualifications of this position.
  • Three professional references.

Please do NOT include your salary history. Wage/salary depends on qualifications or rules of promotion, if applicable.  
 
For Your Privacy:
When attaching documents to your application (such as Resume, Cover Letter, Transcripts, DD-214, etc.):

  • Please be sure to remove private information such as your social security number, date of birth, etc. 
  • Do not attach documents that are password-protected, as these documents may not be reviewed and may cause errors within your application when downloaded. 

Additional Application Instructions for Current Ecology Employees:
 
Please make sure to answer the agency-wide questions regarding permanent status as a classified employee within the Washington General Service or Washington Management Service. Do not forget to select Department of Ecology as a response to question 2, and type your personnel ID number for question 3. If you are not sure of your status or do not know your personnel ID number, please contact Human Resources.

Application Attestation: 

The act of submitting application materials electronically is considered affirmation that the information is complete and truthful. The state may verify this information and any untruthful or misleading answers are cause for rejection of your application or dismissal if employed. 

Other Information:

If you have specific questions about the position, please email Erik Van Doren at: Erik.VanDoren@ecy.wa.gov. Please do not contact Erik to inquire about the status of your application.
 
To request the full position description: email careers@ecy.wa.gov

Why work for Ecology?

As an agency, our mission is to protect, preserve and enhance Washington’s environment for current and future generations. We invest in our employees to create and sustain a working environment that encourages creative leadership, effective resource management, teamwork, professionalism, and accountability.

Joining Ecology means becoming a part of a team committed to protecting and restoring Washington State’s environment. A career in public service allows you to help solve some of the most challenging problems facing our state, while keeping your health and financial security a priority. We combine one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation with a strong commitment to life/work balance.

Ecology employees may be eligible for the following:
Medical/Dental/Vision for employee & dependent(s)Public Employees Retirement System (PERS)Vacation, Sick, and other Leave*, 11 Paid Holidays per year*, Public Service Loan ForgivenessTuition Waiver,  Long Term Disability & Life InsuranceDeferred Compensation ProgramsDependent Care Assistance Program (DCAP),  Flexible Spending Arrangement (FSA)Employee Assistance ProgramCommute Trip Reduction Incentives (Download PDF reader)Combined Fund DriveSmartHealth *See the Benefits tab in this announcement for more information 

Student debt: how working for Ecology can help
The Department of Ecology is a qualifying employer for the Public Service Forgiveness Program (PSLF). See https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/repay-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service for more details.

To learn more about The Department of Ecology, please visit our website at www.ecology.wa.gov and follow, like or visit us on LinkedInTwitterFacebookInstagram or our blog.


Collective Bargaining: This is a position covered by a bargaining unit for which the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE) is the exclusive representative.   

Equal Opportunity Employer: The Washington State Department of Ecology is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, veterans, military spouses or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply. Persons needing accommodation in the application/testing process or this job announcement in an alternative format may call (360) 407-6186. Applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing may call the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.


Note: This recruitment may be used to fill other positions of the same job classification across the agency. Once all the position(s) from the recruitment announcement are filled, the recruitment may only be used to fill additional open positions for the next sixty (60) days. 

 

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