The Environmental Protection Specialist position is located within the Safety Department at the VA Medical Center in Syracuse, New York. Environmental Protection Specialists play a central role in planning and administering environmental programs. Environmental protection programs deal with the environmental impacts of human activities on air, land, water, and other media.

Duties

Environmental protection programs are designed to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulations governing air emissions, hazardous materials, non-hazardous and hazardous waste, oil spills, water quality, and the storage of regulated substances (e.g. petroleum products, chemicals, and wastes), among other areas, and to alleviate the adverse impacts of human activities on the environment. Environmental protection specialists support VA's Green Environmental Management System (GEMS) implementation and apply specialized knowledge of one or more programs or functional areas of environmental protection work, but do not require full professional competence in environmental engineering or science. Other duties include but are not limited to:- Administers the Green Environmental Management System (GEMS) program;- Implements hazardous waste management program;- Advises management officials on environmental programs and requirements; - Reviews facility projects to determine environmental effects and provide information to minimize adverse impact; - Provides technical advice regarding response to environmental emergencies; - Interacts with federal, state, and local environmental agencies in regards to facility environmental issues; - Schedules and leads environmental audits to evaluate compliance activities; - Performs other related duties as assigned Work schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm Compressed/Flexible Schedule: Available with supervisor approval Telework: Ad-Hoc Virtual: This NOT a virtual position. Position Description Title/PD#: Environmental Protection Specialist/ 01709-O Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: NOT Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: NOT Required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/25/2024. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education s described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower GS-09 grade level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: providing technical expertise for the design, modification, operation and maintenance of facilities to ensure compliance with environmental regulations; knowledge of regulations pertaining to OSHA and EPA; knowledge of the laws pertaining to storage/disposal of hazardous wastes and medical wastes; providing oversight and technical assistance on a range of environmental activities; conducting training on environmental management systems; advising management on how environmental policies/procedures will affect operations; conducting audits, inspections and surveys of environmental programs; and measuring the effectiveness of environmental programs and recommending modifications to meet changing requirements. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a related field of study. This education must have been obtained at an accredited college or university. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one (1) year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours will be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond the baccalaureate level in a field of study directed related to the position. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: ComplianceEnvironmental EngineeringPlanning and EvaluatingTechnical Competence Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work includes frequent audits of waste storage areas and involves a good deal of walking, standing, bending, and climbing. During audits and inspections, there is regular exposure to all of the hazards and discomforts to which the workers are subjected. This may include toxic chemicals, physical stresses, and safety hazards. The employee must use a variety of protective equipment and clothing. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address Syracuse VA Medical Center 800 Irving Ave Syracuse, NY 13210 US
• Name: Valerie Rarick
• Phone: 315-425-4400 X56571
• Email: [email protected]