Natural Resource Specialist

Summary

This position is located with Bonneville Power Administration, in the Vegetation Management and Forestry (TFBV), Internal Operations (TFB),Transmission Field Services (TF), Transmission Services (T). A successful candidate in the Natural Resource Specialist position will be responsible for planning and carrying out project management activities in support of Rights-of-Way (ROW) and Forestry projects within the assigned District.

Duties

• As a Natural Resource Specialist, you will: Plan and carry out vegetation management activities in support of Rights-of-Way (ROW) and access road projects. Develop and implement short-term and long-term regional (multi-district) management plan for vegetation control. Develop and prioritize annual, out-year, and special project schedules, budgets, and requests or the vegetation management and access road programs, coordinating planned activities with affected departments (e.g., Transmission Line Maintenance, Realty, Environment, Contracting) to identify and resolve critical issues, avoid regional and system conflicts, and insure project success. Prepare site-specific vegetation management prescriptions and related Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) checklists (or ROW management plans) consistent with guidance provided by the BPA Transmission System Vegetation Management Program FEIS and related National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements. Serve as a project manager on ROW and access road projects. Review transmission line corridors and construction projects for compliance with line maintenance standards for ROW clearing, access road erosion control, and structure site vegetation. Serve as a Contracting Office Representative (COR) and monitor performance and compliance with contract specifications.

Qualifications

BASIC REQUIREMENT: Degree: biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. GS-11: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position is defined as: 1) collaborating on a team in support of short- and long-term planning, to implement vegetation management and forestry project activities; AND 2) assisting in the development of work plans to identify and resolve environmental resource issues while complying with environmental regulations. You may substitute education for specialized experience at the GS-11 level as follows: Three years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree, or Ph.D., or equivalent doctoral degree; your education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. -OR- Combination of education and experience as described above. Less than one year of specialized experience may be combined with graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level (i.e., credit hours beyond the first two years of full-time study may be credited). GS-12: A qualified candidate's online application and resume must demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11) in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position is defined as: 1) developing and implementing integrated vegetation management, forestry, or natural resource plans for utility rights of way or managed corridors, or similar projects; 2) applying environmental laws and regulations to prepare compliance documentation, and resolve disputes with diverse public and private stakeholders; AND 3) managing projects by establishing projects by establishing project schedules, budgets and monitoring contractor compliance. "Experience" refers to paid and unpaid experience. Examples of qualifying unpaid experience may include: volunteer work done through National Service programs (such as Peace Corps and AmeriCorps); as well as work for other community-based philanthropic and social organizations. Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills; and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. You must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Requirements

In accordance with Executive Order 14170, applicants are encouraged to respond to four short, free-response, essay questions in the questionnaire. Answer to these questions is not scored or rated. Your answers will be reviewed by the hiring manager and agency leadership if you are referred for selection consideration. When you apply you will be asked a series of questions to determine your eligibility for employment and your qualification for this position specifically. You must answer all of these questions completely and truthfully. Key Requirements: You must be a United States Citizen. This employer participates in the e-Verify program. Males must abide by Selective Service registration requirements. You will be required to report in person to the official duty location. Conditions of Employment: Selectee will be required to complete the Office of Government Ethics Standard of Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OFGE450e) within 30 days of employment and annually. This position requires a valid driver's license as a condition of employment. After employment, this position may be subject to periodic physical examinations, as prescribed by competent medical authority and at BPA expense, if exposed to health hazards. May be required to serve as Contracting Officers Representative for BPA grants and agreements; this duty includes additional training and certification. A preliminary background check must be completed before a new employee can begin work. Current Federal employees or other individuals with an existing completed background investigation may not be required to undergo another background check.

Education

This vacancy has a positive education requirement. In order to be rated as qualified, you must provide copies of your college transcripts. Education must be obtained from an accredited institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. See Department of Education Accreditation Search to verify school accreditation. Foreign education must be reviewed by an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education and a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, see the Department of Education website.DO NOT email or mail in any of your application documents. Documents will not be accepted outside of the online application system. Failure to provide copies of your college transcripts may result in a rating of "Ineligible".

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section. A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the announcement closing date to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: You must have a login.gov account to sign into USAJOBS: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to/account. To begin the application process in USAJOBS, click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all required and supporting documentation. You must click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 pm (ET) on the announcement closing date. After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder. If you are asked to take the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be presented with a unique URL to access the USA Hire system. Access to USA Hire is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Be sure to review all instructions prior to beginning your USA Hire Assessments. Click here for Computer System Requirements Note, set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can reuse the URL sent to you via email and also found in your USAJOBS account under the "Track my application" link for the corresponding application. You may update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period by returning to your USAJOBS account, select Update Application: https://login.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To verify the status of your application, during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account; applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each application status means, visit: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to/application/status. If you need help with login.gov or USAJOBS (e.g., account access, Resume Builder) visit the USAJOBS Help Center: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to If you experience difficulty applying on USAJOBS, after clicking the Apply Online button, or you are experiencing a significant hardship hindering your ability to apply online, the Agency Contact listed in the announcement can assist you during normal business hours. If you receive any system error messages, take screenshots if possible, to aid technical support.