King County River and Floodplain Management Section Seasonal Short Term Temporary Noxious Weeds Specialist - King County River and Floodplain Management (Renton, WA)
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Job Description_RioCrew2.0_ChangesAccepted
King County River and Floodplain Management Section
Seasonal Short Term Temporary Noxious Weeds Specialists I
(Four Positions)
Date of Posting: 2/21/2024
The King County River and Floodplain Management Section (RFMS) maintains flood protection facilities (levees, revetments) and floodplain properties along the major river systems in King County, including the South Fork Skykomish, Snoqualmie, Tolt, Raging, Sammamish, Cedar, Green and White Rivers. Instream and riparian habitat restoration and enhancement projects have been implemented on many of these flood protection facilities and floodplain properties sites since the mid-1990’s. Many of these properties need maintenance or enhancement, mainly in the form of noxious and invasive weed management, site preparation, debris removal and planting. Two recent large projects, the 80-acre Lower Russell and 15-acre Jan Road Levee Setback, have thousands of native plantings installed that require extensive maintenance. Additional site management needs include occasional access control, thinning, pruning, succession planting, signage, debris removal, and inspection or recreational trail maintenance. Monitoring of vegetation survival and cover and fish and wildlife utilization may also be needed on some sites.
To meet these site maintenance needs, RFSM will be hiring four seasonal short term temporary staff to work on these past and future restoration sites. Staff in these positions will be classified as Noxious Weed Specialist I and will typically work in a four-person team to safely carry out stewardship work. These are entry level positions which will give team members first-hand experience in site restoration and stewardship. Most of the work will be labor intensive and will often be done under challenging field conditions including working in all weather conditions and on steep slopes near fast moving water. Safety training will include defensive driving, first aid and CPR, and Swiftwater Awareness which includes in-water self-rescue practice. Additional training in plant identification, planting, gas-powered tool operation and herbicide treatment will also be provided as needed. Those with active WSDA pesticide applicator’s licenses (or ability to complete requirements quickly) are encouraged to apply and will be compensated at $33.88/hour (Step 3) once a spray license is obtained.
Job Details
Start: Early April 2024
End: October 2024
Total allowable hours: 960
Reporting Location: Renton, WA
Hours per week: 32 (Mon-Thur).
Compensation: $31.55/hour (with pesticide applicator’s license – $33.88/hr (Step 3)). One crew lead will be chosen and compensated at $36.37/hr (Step 6).
If interested, please contact: · John Koon, RFMS Maintenance Supervisor at john.koon@kingcounty.gov or 206 477-4741; OR · Matt Knox, RFMS Supervising Ecologist at maknox@kingcounty.gov or 206-263-0119.