This position serves as a technical authority in environmental engineering for a VA Medical Center with responsibility for assuring adequacy of facility Green Environmental Management Systems (GEMS) and compliance with US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) regulations.

Duties

Duties may include, but are not limited to the following: Provides expert advice and technical assistance to meet numerous environmental regulatory requirements. Provides corrective actions and tracks status of corrections in response to the gap analyses report by the VISN GEMS Coordinator for the WNY facilities. Reviews implementation of GEMS policy and procedures and reports the status to senior management. Discusses deficiencies and necessary remedial action with appropriate VA Medical Center staff including senior management. Provides recommendations regarding environmental engineering projects as needed to achieve and maintain regulatory compliance. Annually reviews, updates, and reports the facility inventory of hazardous chemicals and wastes. Assists in developing, implementing, and maintaining effective programs for the identification, collection and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes at the VA Medical Center. Ensures that that handling of all waste streams comply with Federal, State, and local government laws and regulations. Resolves complex technical and organizational problems using innovative and original approaches. Applies technical knowledge to development of environmental management information systems. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Telework: Ad-hoc: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/03/2024. 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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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. 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. (Do Not Use On Public Announcement) You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Individual Occupational Requirements Basic Requirement: Degree (bachelor's or higher) in engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET); or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships) (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics (d) thermodynamics (e) electrical fields & circuits (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties) and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics. Transcripts required. -OR- Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following: Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT), or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements above. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described above. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive.) (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED) In addition to meeting the Basic Requirement, you must also meet one of the following additional experience requirements at the GS-12 level. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: One (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-11) in the Federal service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Environmental Engineer, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. The professional engineering experience required is defined as non-routine engineering work that required and was characterized by (1) professional knowledge of engineering; (2) professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and (3) positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. Such engineering experience would have provided a working knowledge of engineering, construction, cost estimating, and project management on highly complex projects. Specialized experience at this level includes: managing, supervising, leading, and/or performing professional engineering and scientific work involving environmental programs and projects in the areas of: environmental planning, environmental compliance, identification and cleanup of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes; recommending engineering projects to maintain or improve facilities; and administering a Green Environmental Management System (GEMS) program. NOTE: 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. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Environmental EngineeringOrganizational AwarenessTechnical Competence IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. 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. 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. Physical Requirements: The work requires the employee to carry heavy inspection equipment (up to 50 pounds) and may involve walking, standing, bending, climbing on ladders or crawling for long periods during surveys, inspections, and construction site visits. 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

IMPORTANT: 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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov).

Contacts

• Address VA Western New York Healthcare System 3495 Bailey Avenue Buffalo, NY 14215 US
• Name: Detelshia Baker
• Phone: (281) 928-3768
• Email: [email protected]