Forestry Crew Lead

The Great Basin Institute, in cooperation with the USFS, is recruiting one (1) Forestry Crew Lead to perform timber sale-preparation, vegetation management and restoration projects within the USFS Region 5 forest – Six Rivers National Forest, duty station at Willow Creek, CA. These projects all serve the Basin & Range Forestry program’s greater mission of helping the USFS in their critical goal of improving forest resilience in the face of worsening climate conditions and increased wildfire threats. The work that you will do directly improves the quality of these forests helping ensure they continue to thrive for generations to come.

Selected Lead will serve USFS Region 5’s vegetation management and fuels reduction efforts, supporting initiatives for healthy, productive, and resilient forest landscapes and resources. Projects will vary across Six River National Forest’s Ranger Districts, and include but are not limited to fuels reduction initiatives in wildland urban interface (WUI) areas, in and around sensitive habitats for threatened and endangered species, and watershed protection. The Crew Lead will receive professional development opportunities and benefit from exposure to USFS processes, procedures, compliance measures and reporting, and technical experience.

The Forestry Crew Lead will perform a wide variety of activities to support all stages of project work. The Lead will be responsible for crew safety and oversight, including coordination of daily tasks and affiliated project and crew needs, provide or assist in training, communicate daily/weekly with agency staff to plan and assess crew accomplishments, and communicate with GBI staff as needed. Crew size will be 2 people. Forestry duties may include:

• Timber sale unit boundary delineation and layout (GPSing, flagging, painting);
• Tree species identification;
• Green and salvage timber marking and cruising;
• Timber and biomass plot cruising;
• Collection of stand examination data;
• General silviculture data collection; and
• Identification of various resource concerns including hydrology, heritage, wildlife and recreation.

Contract Timeline:

Start and end dates may vary according to local conditions and individual projects: Tentatively March to November 

Projects are weather dependent and there is always a chance the season will end earlier if weather prevents safe field operations.

Location:

The Six Rivers National Forest includes 974,612 acres of mountainous land that stretches from the Oregon-California border south for approximately 140 miles to Mendocino County. The Six Rivers also manages the Klamath National Forest’s Ukonom Ranger District (195,612 acres), bringing the total land under Six Rivers’ management to 1.17 million acres. The Six Rivers’ headquarters is located in Eureka, with district offices (or “ranger districts”) in the communities of Gasquet (Gasquet Ranger District, which includes the Smith River National Recreation Area), Orleans (Orleans Ranger District), Willow Creek (Lower Trinity Ranger District), and Mad River (Mad River Ranger District).

Elevations across the Forest range from nearly sea-level to approximately 7,000 feet. As a result, the Six Rivers supports diverse ecosystems and landscapes. The Forest is composed of extensive stands of coniferous forest, with moderate amounts of oak woodland and grassland in the southern part of the Forest.

Compensation and Benefits:-

Wage: $28/hour with overtime at 1.5x hourly rate. Full time, average 40 hours per week.

• Health, Dental, Vision Insurance paid 100% by GBI. Available on the first day of the month      following the start of employment.
• Shared housing provided in cooperation with GBI and USFS.
• Camping Per Diem: $15/night as necessary.
• Uniform Stipend.

Job Qualifications:

Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in Forestry (preferred), natural resource management or related field, with coursework (by position start date) AND one year of forestry related field work OR three years of professional fieldwork experience.
• Experience leading crews in the field, including oversight of crew safety, communication, fidelity to methods and data quality;
• Proficiency in navigation using GPS, topographic map and compass;
• Experience with cruising and marking techniques;
• Possess a clean, valid, state-issued driver’s license with the ability to safely operate and maintain a 4WD vehicle on and off paved roads;
• Ability to work effectively in a team setting with USFS staff, GBI staff, interns, volunteers, academic, state, and federal partners;
• Ability to work safely and productively in remote field settings under adverse conditions. This includes occasionally overnight camping in remote areas for consecutive nights;
• Ability to understand, implement and adhere to established data collection, inventory, assessment, and monitoring protocols;
• Strong organizational skills and ability to work cooperatively as well as independently;
• Strong communication skills with a diverse audiences, both written and oral; and
• Physically fit to work outdoors, carry up to 50 pounds of personal and/or field equipment, and withstand the rigors of a forested and/or high desert environment in all seasons.

Preferred:

• Familiarity with and interest in resource management issues of western states and the ecology of the Sierra Nevada ecoregion;
• Familiarity with the mixed conifer forests typical of eastern California, including common plants (woody and herbaceous), wildlife, and/or geology/topography is desirable;
• Capacity to collect and maintain field data in an organized manner that is easily understood and accessible to other resources staff; and
• Advanced skill using specialized software such as Microsoft Office Suite, ArcMap GIS, and Google Earth.

EEO StatementWe conform to all the laws, statutes, and regulations concerning equal employment opportunities and affirmative action. We strongly encourage women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and veterans to apply to all of our job openings. We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin, age, disability status, Genetic Information & Testing, Family & Medical Leave, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We prohibit Retaliation against individuals who bring forth any complaint, orally or in writing, to the employer or the government, or against any individuals who assist or participate in the investigation of any complaint or otherwise oppose discrimination.