Environmental Services Specialist Series – Environmental Services Department

The Environmental Services Department (ESD) is a national leader in pollution prevention, watershed protection, utility service provision, and climate action. Together, ESD employees positively impact every resident and business in San Jose. 
 
Our department is an exceptional place to start or grow your career. We have a supportive leadership team, numerous professional growth opportunities, and an inclusive workplace culture that is welcoming of your talents! We offer an array of meaningful career paths and value flexibility – offering hybrid work and alternative work schedules in select roles. Additionally, the City offers excellent health and pension benefits, as well as 15 paid holidays! 
 
To learn more about ESD, follow @sjenvironment on?X (formally Twitter),?Facebook, Instagram,?and San Jose Environmental Services on LinkedIn.The Environmental Services Department (ESD) is recruiting for the Environmental Services Specialist (ESS) series which includes three levels/classifications: Assistant ESS, Associate ESS, and ESS. ESD intends to use the candidate pool developed from this recruitment to fill current vacancies, as well as future ESS series vacancies. Depending on your qualifications (see Minimum Qualifications below), the application you submit may be considered for an Assistant ESS, Associate ESS, or ESS position. 
 
General Overview of the Environmental Services Specialist (ESS) Series Job Classification:
 
ESS employees play a critical role in providing the many vital services that help protect our environment and improve the lives of San Jose residents!
 
Employees in the ESS series perform highly technical and specialized functions to preserve environmental resources and provide public protection in the area of environmental sciences. ESS employees develop, organize, and coordinate assigned plans, programs, and/or special projects for the City and its environmental services; and act as a primary resource to City officials, the community, and businesses.
 
Typical duties for ESS positions across the department include: 

• Developing and evaluating assigned environmental program goals and policies
• Developing, monitoring, and overseeing contract terms and negotiations, grant proposals, and project budgets
• Analyzing and interpreting data to prepare presentations and written reports
• Assisting the public with environmental compliance issues and City provided environmental services through coordinating environmental outreach events and programs, as well as preparing public education material regarding environmental services information
• Providing project or program-level environmental compliance support, serving as a liaison to outside agencies and regulatory bodies
• Performing duties in the field, such as outreach, inspections, etc.

 
Current ESS Series Vacancies
 
Currently, there are multiple exciting ESS series opportunities in the department’s Watershed Protection, Integrated Waste Management, and Regulatory Affairs & Purified Water divisions! To learn more about the great work we do in these divisions, please go to sjenvironment.org. Overviews of these teams and their ESS series positions are below:
 

• Collaborating with other City departments (Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services; Housing; Public Works; and Transportation) and external partners to support Permit-driven activities, planning, and program implementation
• Implementing the Trash Receiving Water Monitoring Plan by collecting and categorizing trash at cleanups and identifying trash pathways 
• Conducting assessments to evaluate the effectiveness of implemented trash control measures to demonstrate compliance.
• Assisting with continued implementation of the City’s Long-Term Trash Load Reduction Plan and expansion of trash control measures for unprogrammed areas of the City
• Other related duties, such as assisting with public education and outreach activities and managing grants and associated contracts

• Performing Phase I Environmental Site Assessments and general environmental due diligence for City property transactions
• Developing sampling and analysis plans, conduct environmental field sampling activities (soil, groundwater and landfill gas), and provide guidance based on results
• Providing technical support for the ongoing investigation, monitoring and cleanup of the City's Leaking Underground Storage Tank sites   
• Providing technical support for ongoing groundwater and landfill gas monitoring and other environmental compliance obligations for the City's closed landfills
• Preparing various technical reports, organizes data and files and develops standard operating procedures
• Working collaboratively with colleagues, clients, regulatory agencies, and the public.

• Contract management and contractor performance monitoring
• Data management and analysis for reports, presentations, and programmatic improvements
• Regulatory compliance assistance and implementation of City’s solid waste goals 
• Public education and outreach
• Budget management
• Project management, including studies and pilot projects
• Acquisition and management of grants
• Provide excellent customer service
• Work with regional groups and stakeholders

• Conducting research on emerging contaminants and participating in development of Pollution Prevention (P2) program priorities, outreach strategies and collaterals
• Statistical analyses of water quality and environmental data and trends to assess future regulatory compliance risk
• Drafting reports, memos, sections of reports and other technical and non-technical correspondence
• Reviewing technical and non-technical reports as assigned and providing comments and recommendations to managers
• Attending assigned regional stakeholder meetings as a City representative and productive contributing member of the stakeholder group
• Performing and supporting field work activities including P2 outreach, water quality and environmental sampling in San Francisco Bay and RWF, wildlife surveys, and biosolids sampling
• Drafting and managing consultant contracts

 Salary Information

The actual salary shall be determined by the final candidate’s qualifications and experience. The below salary ranges include an approximate five percent (5%) ongoing non-pensionable pay. The annual salary range for the positions are presently as follows:
 
Assistant Environmental Services Specialist: $82,970.16 – $100,835.28
 
Associate Environmental Services Specialist: $96,139.68 – $116,822.16
 
Environmental Services Specialist: $105,989.52 – $128,812.321. Education: A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
 
2. Experience: 
   
Acceptable Substitutions: 
 

• A master’s degree from an accredited college or university may be substituted for one (1) year of the required experience developing, promoting, administering, and/or implementing environmental programs. 
• Additional years of experience in developing, promoting, administering, and/or implementing environmental programs may be substituted for the bachelor's degree requirement on a year-for year basis.

The ideal candidate will possess the following competencies, as demonstrated in past and current employment history.

Competencies
 
The ideal candidate will possess the following competencies, as demonstrated in past and current employment history. Desirable competencies for this position include:
 
Job Expertise – Demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.
 
Teamwork & Interpersonal Skills – Develops effective relationships with co-workers and supervisors by helping others accomplish tasks and using collaboration and conflict resolution skills
 
Problem Solving – Approaches a situation or problem by defining the problem or issue; determines the significance of problem(s); collects information; uses logic and intuition to arrive at decisions or solutions to problems that achieve the desired outcome.
 
Initiative – Exhibits resourceful behaviors toward meeting job objectives; anticipates problems, is proactive, and avoids difficulties by planning ahead; displays willingness to assume extra responsibility and challenges; pursues continuing education opportunities that promotes job performance.
 
Project Management – Ensures support for projects and implements agency goals and strategic objectives.
 
Computer Skills – Experienced with common business computer applications including but not limited to: Adobe Acrobat, MS Outlook, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Access, MS SharePoint, and MS Excel.
 
Communication Skills – Communicates and listens effectively and responds in an timely, effective, positive and respectful manner; written reports and correspondence are accurate, complete, current; well-organized, legible, concise, neat, and in proper grammatical form responds to statements and comments of others in a way that reflects understanding of the content and the accompanying emotion; asks clarifying questions to assure understanding of what the speaker intended, ensures consistent communication takes place within area of responsibility.
 
Selection Process: 
 
The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience based on the application and responses to all the job specific questions. You must answer all questions to be considered or your application may be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Only those candidates whose backgrounds best match the position will be invited to proceed in the selection process. Additional phases of the selection process will consist of one or more interviews.
 
If you have questions about the duties of these positions, the selection or hiring processes, please contact Phil Dunbar at Phillip.Dunbar@sanjoseca.gov.

Salary : $82,970 - $128,812