Arborist Fellow

Summary

American Conservation Experience, a nonprofit Conservation Corps, in partnership with Yosemite National Park, is seeking One Member to contribute to arborist projects alongside park Staff.

For more information about ACE, please visit: www.usaconservation.org.

Start Date: May/June 2024

Estimated End Date: March 2025

*a 40-week minimum commitment is required*

Location Details/Description:

The ACE member will be based in El Portal, CA in the Yosemite Division of Resource, Management, and Science building. A touchdown office space will be provided with the History, Architecture, and Landscapes branch. Work will primarily take place in Yosemite Valley, with other work locations in Wawona, Foresta, and El Portal.

Yosemite National Park, California, known worldwide for its spectacular natural beauty is the backdrop for this position. Sitting astride the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the park covers 1,182 square miles of varied wilderness ecosystems, from river valleys to alpine meadows to lofty 13,000-foot-high peaks. Yosemite Valley is located 208 miles from San Francisco, 81 miles from Merced, and 94 miles from Fresno. Shopping, medical, postal and laundry services are available in the park and in El Portal. Elevation at the Valley floor is approximately 4,000 feet and 2,200 feet in El Portal.

For more information about Yosemite National Park, please visit https://www.nps.gov/yose/index.htm.

Position Overview: The ACE EPIC intern will assist Yosemite National Park staff in the stabilization of up to seven historic orchards and other culturally significant flora throughout the park. Through the work, the intern will perform the techniques of arboriculture to preserve trees as old as 170 years. Tasks will include pruning, apple picking, clearing dead and diseased trees, and application of herbicide on trees recently cut. Other projects the ACE member may be tasked with are the dating of potentially historic trees and removal of non-historic fruit trees. In addition to working with the History, Architecture, and Landscapes branch, the ACE member will also work with the Vegetation and Ecological Restoration branch, the Wildlife branch, and the Forestry division.

Other specific tasks will include:

• Perform sections of the orchard management plan dealing with horticulture and related landscape, vegetation, wildlife, and soil management considerations. Prepare specific action plans needed to manage the flora and soil components of landscapes.
• Serve as an Arborist responsible for the identification, treatment, preservation, and maintenance of historic orchard landscapes and other culturally significant flora in the park.
• Provide technical guidance for landscape management operations, determining equipment and material requirements.
• Conduct tree and plant inventories, identify tree and plant species, and determine threatened/endangered or rare status, and document location and range. Collect, prepare and document representative plant specimens for grafting and documentation.

This individual placement is meant to facilitate professional development and promotes exposure to land management agencies and networking with professionals. This could include gaining experience in different conservation fields and shadowing different work groups.

Schedule: Flexible schedule based on season and workload. 40 hours (8 hours a day) to be completed within the timeframe of Mon-Fri, 7:30am – 4:30pm PST. Schedule can be adjusted during times of extreme heat or cold and based on daylight hours.

Position Benefits

Living Allowance: The ACE Member is expected to contribute ~40 hours/week and will receive a living allowance of $900/week to offset the costs of food and incidental expenses, dispersed bi-weekly.

Public Land Corps Hiring Authority: Members serving under this agreement may be eligible for a federal hiring authority upon completion of their term of service and 640 hours of service. If the duration of a PLC-eligible term is not long enough for Members to accrue 640 hours of service (~16 weeks), the total hours served at the completion of the term may be eligible to be combined with hours accrued from another PLC-eligible term to meet the 640 hours requirement. PLC projects also include specific eligibility requirements such as age and citizenship. Please contact ACE staff with questions about eligibility, or view general information online: https://www.usaconservation.org/epic/#eligibility-requirements. 

Housing: ACE members will be accommodated in provided housing at no cost for the duration of the term.

Professional Development Allowance: ACE members will have up to $1000 to spend on eligible gear purchases. Eligible gear for this position includes typical Arborist tools, and must be approved by ACE staff prior to purchase.

Provided Training/Orientation: ACE members will receive position specific training and an orientation outlining ACE policies and procedures, clear guidance on prohibited activities, and networks for support. Specific training may include the NPS Arborist Webinar series: Electrical Hazard Awareness, Emergency Preparedness, and Tree Selection, Planting and Establishment.

Qualifications

Required:

• Members must be a U.S. citizen or Permanent Resident, as required by U.S. government contracts
• Willing and able to represent ACE and the partner organization in a professional, positive, and enthusiastic manner.
• Knowledge of pruning and tree management techniques.
• Ability to be both self-directed/work alone, and be a positive, contributing member of a group.
• A valid driver’s license and an insurable driving record (documentation to be provided upon request).
• Willing to undergo and must pass the required criminal history check.
• Ability to perform the essential duties of the position with or without reasonable accommodation.
• ACE Members will need to complete bi-weekly timesheets, beginning of term feedback forms, end of term evaluations and for longer terms, a mid-term evaluation.
• To learn more about eligibility requirements, please visit our website https://www.usaconservation.org/epic/#eligibility-requirements. 

Preferred:

• ISA Arborist Certification (or willingness to obtain certification).
• Competitive applicants for this position can hold or be pursuing an Associate or Bachelor’s degree and/or have relevant experience in subject areas such as horticulture, arboriculture, natural resources, biology, and relates disciplines.
• Willingness to learn and work as part of a team.
• Interest in horticulture, historic preservation, and gardening.

Physical Demands, Work Environment and Working Conditions:

• Physical Demands: Requires frequent sitting, standing, walking, hiking, carrying, using hands to handle or feel, reaching with hands and arms, talking and hearing. Manual dexterity required for use of various tools, computer keyboard/mouse and other office equipment. Required to stoop, kneel, climb stairs, and/or crouch. Ability to hike over rough terrain, and camp overnight under field conditions.
• Vision Requirements: Requires close, distance, peripheral and depth perception vision as well as the ability to focus.
• Weight Lifted or Force Exerted: Frequently moves up to 20 lbs., ability to move up to 40 pounds.
• Environmental: Outdoor and indoor conditions. Work environment conditions can change frequently; working under adverse weather conditions and in various climates. Mainly indoor, office environment conditions; indoor air quality is good and temperature is controlled.
• Noise Environment: Moderate to high noise such as gas-powered chainsaws and other hand and power tools. Moderate noise such as in a business office with equipment and light traffic.
• Travel: This position may require domestic travel.

Environmental Conditions/Hazards: The ACE member(s) may encounter environmental conditions/hazards including extreme heat or cold, rocky terrain, swamp or wetland conditions, biting insects, and potentially dangerous wildlife, and poor air quality due to wildfires. The member is expected to conduct duties in a safe and orderly manner so as not to endanger self, fellow staff/members or resources.

Vehicle and Equipment Use/Safety: If a vehicle is required for the accomplishment of the duties, one will be provided by the NPS. Any tools required for the accomplishment of the duties will be provided by the NPS. Use of personal protective equipment (PPE), typically provided by the NPS, will be mandatory for any activity that requires it. Strict adherence to NPS and ACE equipment training, certification and safety protocols is required.

EEO: Employment with ACE is based upon ability, qualifications, attitude, and job-related factors. Every qualified employee or applicant has the same opportunity for recruitment, hire, training, transfer, promotion, compensation, demotion, termination, benefits, employee activities, and general treatment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, gender, national origin, pregnancy, ancestry, citizenship status, genetic information (including of a family member), veteran or military status, age, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, medical condition, marital or parental status, political affiliation, ethnicity, hair texture or style, arrest record, caste, hereditary status, endogamy, or any other classification protected by applicable local, state, or federal law.