Job opening: Rangeland Management Specialist
Salary: $59 966 - 77 955 per year
Relocation: YES
Published at: Aug 09 2024
Employment Type: Full-time
This position is located in the Resource Division at Curecanti National Recreation Area (CURE).
Duties
This is a term position (more than 1 year) with an initial appointment expecting to last at least 13 months but may be extended up to a total of two years, or more based on any changes to regulations governing the number of years term appointments may last, without further competition. Term positions do not convey permanent status in the Federal service. The National Park Service retains the right to extend the duration of this appointment after selection and/or appointment, based on changes to the regulation governing the number of years term appointments may last. This change, which may be made at the agency's sole discretion and without further competition, shall not be construed or interpreted as the granting of a right to a selectee or employee to such an extension. No extension to a term appointment shall be granted to a selectee/employee to an amount of time that exceeds the maximum number of years authorized under any present or current regulation, unless such regulation expressly allows such action.
Curecanti National Recreation Area is located 16 miles west of Gunnison, Colorado. The park encompasses three reservoirs, including Blue Mesa Reservoir, the largest body of water in Colorado. The two lower reservoirs are within the spectacular Black Canyon of the Gunnison. The park is at over 7,000 feet in elevation, and has sagebrush hills, deep forested canyons, and high desert plateaus. The park is home to a variety of plants and abundant wildlife, including mule deer, elk, and big horn sheep. There are 10,000 years of human history to explore, from Ute Indians to the narrow-gauge railroads and mines of the 19th century. There are abundant recreational opportunities in the area, including camping, biking, water activities, fishing, and hiking. Government housing might be available. Gunnison has a population of approximately 5000 and offers grocery, shopping, and medical services.
Major duties include, but are not limited to the following:
Serves as the rangeland and grazing advisor to the Curecanti National Recreational Area and Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park superintendent and management team, and the principal contact and negotiator for National Park Service special-use permits (SUPs) issued for grazing by the two park units.
Reviews range-related special-use permit applications to ensure compliance with appropriate federal law, as well as Department of the Interior and National Park Service regulations and policy.
Assures that issued special-use permits are consistent with existing compliance documents and the Grazing Management Plan under development for the two park units, by working with the park's resource management employees, regional range and grazing specialists, and the parks' management team. This will include reviewing any range-related planning documents under development.
Plans, manages, produces, and implements evaluations for permitted allotments by collecting, analyzing, and interpreting scientific data to determine the status of each allotment under review. Results of evaluations are written reports to support permitting decisions.
Processes appeals, prepares casework in preparation for hearings, and may appear as an expert witness, when necessary, to explain agency permitting actions.
Qualifications
All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-08/26/2024-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.
Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount of qualified specialized experience.
Basic Requirements for Range Management Specialist:
Possess a degree in range management; or a related discipline that included at least 42 semester hours in a combination of the plant, animal, and soil sciences, and natural resources management, as follows:
Range Management -- At least 18 semester hours of course work in range management, including courses in such areas as basic principles of range management, range plants, range ecology, range inventories and studies, range improvements, and ranch or rangeland planning.
Directly Related Plant, Animal, and Soil Sciences -- At least 15 semester hours of directly related courses in the plant, animal, and soil sciences, including at least one course in each of these three scientific areas, i.e., plant, animal, and soil sciences. Courses in such areas as plant taxonomy, plant physiology, plant ecology, animal nutrition, livestock production, and soil morphology or soil classification are acceptable.
Related Resource Management Studies -- At least 9 semester hours of course work in related resource management subjects, including courses in such areas as wildlife management, watershed management, natural resource or agricultural economics, forestry, agronomy, forages, and outdoor recreation management.
You must provide copies of your transcripts.
-OR-
Have a combination of education and experience with at least 42 semester hours of course work in the combination of plant, animal, and soil sciences and natural resources management shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. You must provide copies of your transcripts and the hours per week and to/from dates (month/year) on your resume.
-AND-
To qualify for this position at the GS-09 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following OPM's Qualification Standards by close of the announcement:
Possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in the Federal service that equipped me with the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to successfully perform the duties of this position. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Qualifying specialized experience includes but is not limited to: implementation of complex conservation practices using a variety of techniques; applies management plans for grazing operators and/or land managers that involve a variety of soil, vegetation, or infrastructure patterns; conducts grassland vegetation identification, inventory and monitoring; monitors allotment/lease evaluations and inspections; analyzing data related to multiple resource management issues; use of Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping and spatial analysis; protecting sensitive habitats; ensuring that activities on public land are conducted in accordance with applicable laws; provides input for compliance documents, environmental reports and impact statements. You must provide hours per week and to/from dates (month/year) on your resume.
-OR-
Possess two years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree in a field of study corresponding to the course work defined above. You must provide copies of your transcripts.
-OR-
Possess a combination of the required education and specialized experience. (Only graduate education in excess of 1 year [18 semester hours unless otherwise specified by the college] may be used to qualify for this grade level.) For example, I have six months of specialized experience (50% of the experience requirement), and 27 semester hours of graduate level education as described (50% of the education requirement). You must provide copies of your transcripts and the hours per week and to/from dates (month/year) on your resume.
Volunteer Experience: 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; religious; 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.
Education
To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an
accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.
If you are using
education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.
Contacts
- Address NPS Inflation Reduction Act
1849 C St. NW
Washington, DC 20240
US
- Name: Heather Dujay
- Email: [email protected]
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