Career Opportunity

Biologist III - Natural Resources & Lands Management Division - SFPUC (2484)

Recruitment: RTF0136057-01148714

Published: July 07, 2023

Apply using SmartRecruiters, the City and County of San Francisco's application portal.

About:

• Application Opening: June 21, 2023
• Application Deadline: July 14, 2023 
• Compensation Range: $132,626 - $161,200 (Effective July 1, 2023)
• Recruitment ID: RTF0136057-01148714 (136058)

APPOINTMENT TYPE: Temporary Exempt: This position is excluded by the Charter from the competitive Civil Service examination process and shall serve at the discretion of the Appointing Officer.

• The duration of the appointment shall not exceed 36 months. 

WHO ARE WE? 

San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC)

Headquartered in San Francisco, we have 2,300 employees operating across eight counties serving more than 2.7 million customers in the San Francisco Bay Area – 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.

Our Mission: To provide our customers with high quality, efficient, and reliable water, power, and wastewater services in a manner that values environmental and community interests and sustains the resources entrusted to our care.

Our Vision: We are an innovative utility leader, recognized for excellent results in service, safety, stewardship, and inclusiveness.

We are an award-winning and industry-leading utilities organization committed to our customers, community interests, and the environment. To learn more about our organization, please visit our website at https://www.sfpuc.org/.

We are proud of our infrastructure and programs, but most importantly, we value our highly qualified and dedicated workforce which ensures that this vision becomes a reality. 
To learn more about working at the SFPUC, visit our career site at https://www.sfpuc.org/about-us/careers-sfpuc

Natural Resources and Lands Management Division

The Natural Resources and Lands Management (NRLM) Division within the Water Enterprise of the SFPUC is responsible for the management of approximately 61,000 acres of Bay Area watershed lands under SFPUC ownership as well as 150 miles of utility right-of-way. The NRLM Division is responsible for managing, protecting, restoring, and monitoring the ecological resources on these lands and environmental compliance for the operations and maintenance of the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System which serves 2.7 million customers. We also monitor shoreline and marine environments of the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean to ensure that effluents from the SFPUC’s wastewater systems meet state and federal standards and do not impact the environment or public health.  We are committed to responsible natural resources management that protects and restores viable populations of native species and maintains the integrity of the ecosystems that support them for current and future generations. We strive to become a leader in science-based and collaborative environmental stewardship in order to continue providing high-quality and reliable water supplies to our customers.

Role description

Project Name:  Bioassay Laboratory TNI Certification and Management                  

Position Description:

Under general supervision, plans and coordinates bioassay testing and reporting in accordance with regulatory permit requirements related to drinking water and wastewater facilities. Manages day to day operations of and maintains required accreditations for SFPUC’s Oceanside Bioassay Laboratory. Plans, designs, develops, and coordinates special and non-routine monitoring, as needed, to address evolving regulatory requirements, facility operations, watershed resources, or conditions in freshwater, estuarine and marine environments. Works independently and in conjunction with Water Quality and Wastewater engineers, regulatory specialists, laboratory staff and other biologists to identify and resolve environmental problems associated with facility operations and to achieve compliance with regulations. Trains technical and professional personnel in effective field sampling techniques and laboratory processing procedures. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Provides technical support and organizational leadership to National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) regulatory compliance monitoring with a focus on acute and chronic bioassay testing of effluent from SFPUC wastewater and drinking water facilities. 
• Maintains laboratory accreditation for the Oceanside Bioassay Laboratory including correspondences with accreditation officials, applications, inspections, fees, and maintaining laboratory documentation and standards.
• Manages Oceanside Bioassay Laboratory workflow, scheduling, and procurement in coordination with the Supervising Biologist.
• Works with diverse stakeholders regarding SFPUC projects, permit compliance, and related activities; articulately represents the SFPUC to outside stakeholders; works effectively and courteously with multidisciplinary teams, departmental officials, managers, staff, regulatory personnel, and the public; coordinates with SFPUC Communications.
• Leads report preparation for treatment plant bioassay monitoring as well as correspondences, memoranda, and scientific studies; edits and reviews written materials prepared by Marine Biology Section staff or consultants; may prepare research materials for presentation and technical conferences.
• Develops and maintains laboratory traceability documentation and methods meeting Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) and The NELAC Institute (TNI) standards. Coordinates laboratory method certification with SFPUC Water Quality Division laboratory staff, as needed, to ensure that the Bioassay Laboratory maintains certification status without interruption.
• Trains bioassay biologists and other technical and field staff to conduct laboratory and fieldwork safely, meeting all certified method criteria.
• Designs, develops, and implements bioassay testing methods that provide defensible scientific data for meeting regulatory and laboratory certification requirements.
• Maintains Bioassay Laboratory quality assurance and training protocols, and coordinates staffing needs with the Supervising Biologist.
• Analyzes bioassay test data with the purpose of determining the effectiveness of existing monitoring studies to meet permit requirements, and proposes changes, as necessary.
• Coordinates bioassay testing schedules for SFPUC wastewater and water treatment facilities.
• Prepares and reviews routine bioassay testing reports,
• Provides technical review for permit and policy updates.
• Participates in negotiations with federal and state regulatory agencies, other regional agencies and local interest groups,
• Provides contract management for bioassay test organism screenings for SFPUC NPDES permits,
• Exercises supervision in the absence of the Supervising Biologist, and
• Other related duties as assigned.

Working Conditions:

• Work under inclement weather conditions may be required.
• Working with treated and untreated sewage may be required.

How to qualify

If you are interested in a job like this, we are looking for people that have the following:

Education and Experience:

• Possession of baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university with a major in environmental biology, marine biology, aquatic biology, wildlife biology, fisheries biology, limnology, aquatic toxicology microbiology, biochemistry, or a related environmental science;

AND

• Six (6) years of verifiable environmental experience in field or laboratory biology.

License or Certificate:

• Possession of a valid driver's license.

Verification of Education and Experience:

Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. More information can be found at: https://sfdhr.org/information-about-hiring-process#verification

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training, and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility, disqualification or may lead to lower scores.

What else should I know?

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About The Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview  
• Equal Employment Opportunity 
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. Visit https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/CityAndCountyOfSanFrancisco1/ and begin the application process.

• Select the “I’m Interested” button and follow instructions on the screen

Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept CCSF mail from the following addresses (@sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, @smartalerts.info, and @smartrecruiters.com).

Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

Analyst Information: If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the Human Resources Analyst, Brandon Bradley at BBradley@sfwater.org.

CONDITION OF EMPLOYMENT:  All City and County of San Francisco employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment. Someone is fully vaccinated when 14 days have passed since they received the final dose of a two-shot vaccine or a dose of a one-shot vaccine. Any new hire must present proof of full vaccination status to be appointed. Any new hire who will be routinely assigned or occasionally enter High-Risk Settings, must provide proof of having received a COVID-19 booster vaccine by March 1, 2022, or once eligible.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.