District Resource Specialist

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is looking to fill a full-time unlimited Natural Resource Specialist Senior Parks and Trails, District Resource Specialist position located in Sauk Rapids, MN.

This position exists to plan, implement, and oversee the resource management program within Parks and Trails District or multiple geographic work areas, and to provide professional assistance in developing and applying statewide resource management policy for the division in accordance with the Strategic Plan for Natural and Cultural Resource Management.

This includes, under limited supervision:

• Planning and implementing ecological protection, restoration, maintenance, and enhancement projects across biologically diverse sites.
• Completing resource assessments and ensuring rare species protection across a range of sites, including state parks, state trails and public water accesses with varying statutory directions. This includes determining when biological surveys are needed, deciding how best to avoid, minimize, or mitigate impacts to rare species and enhancing rare species populations and habitats as part of assessing and implementing activities on division lands.
• Providing lead work to professional, technical, and labor staff in developing, monitoring, and administering natural and cultural resource management efforts. Projects and varied, often involving invasive species management, prescribed fire, and native plant community restorations.
• Providing technical resource management expertise, recommendations, and leadership to division staff, and internal and external partners. Ensuring that resource management activities are successfully implemented and monitored while both natural and cultural resources are protected.
• Representing the division’s resource management program to other DNR divisions, state and federal agencies, local municipalities, and the general public.
• Directing and managing budgets for labor, supplies, fleet, and contracts in accordance with policy.
• Directing, developing, and implementing short and long-term plans so that the program goals and objectives are achieved.