Plants Crew Lead

Job Type: Full-time, seasonal

Hourly Wage: $22.00 to $24.00 depending on experience

Experience: Minimum 2 years’ Experience; 3 – 6 years’ experience preferred

MISSION:

The Cottonwood Canyons Foundation supports the environment of the Cottonwood Canyons through stewardship and education.  The Cottonwood Canyons provide approximately 60% of the drinking water for the Salt Lake area. Located just east of Salt Lake City (and home to Alta, Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude), the Cottonwood Canyons are located within one of the most highly visited portions of national forest in the nation, with the tri-canyons receiving over 5 million visits a year.

CCF strives to educate the public on the Canyons’ importance and how they can help promote their ecological health. CCF works to provide the community with direct and hands-on ways to give back to this environment through volunteering.

PURPOSE OF POSITION:

The CCF Plants Crew is a team of hard-working botanists who strive to steward the botanical ecosystem of the Central Wasatch mountains. As these canyons are essential for the drinking water supply for Salt Lake City, the healthy, biodiverse ecosystem acts as a natural water filtration system. The crew responsibilities include mapping invasive plants, treating invasive plants either by hand pulling or herbicide, restoring disturbed areas with seeds or seedlings, collecting native plant seeds, mapping rare plants, and hosting volunteer events.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Manage day-to-day field operations, crew members, and volunteers, and assign proper tasks that make the plants program function efficiently, while prioritizing safety
• Communicate with the Plants Stewardship Director daily to coordinate project scheduling, scope of work details, human resource issues and incident reporting, joint events, and social media production
• Assess, train, and supervise fellow crew members and maintain equipment conditions and an up-to-date tool inventory
• Assist in ensuring that proper project reporting is completed, including end-of-project reports, project tool inventories, daily logs, and volunteer paperwork
• This is a challenging job with long, physically-demanding days in extreme outdoor environments (regular high temperatures with full sun exposure)
• CCF is seeking a crew lead who is driven to do high quality work, curious to learn new skills, and able to maintain a positive attitude in adverse and dynamic conditions
• The position requires a proven ability to work hard, be independently motivated, and be a creative problem solver
• CCF seeks a crew lead who is eager to work professionally alongside fellow crew members, partner organizations, volunteers, and members of the public. CCF seeks a crew lead who is adaptable, safety oriented, open to feedback

REQUIRED SKILLS:

• Strong experience identifying plants and using dichotomous keys
• Proven experience using mapping software such as ArcGIS Field Maps or Collector
• Strong knowledge of and experience with growing plants
• Strong weeding/ invasive plant removal experience
• Documented coursework in botany, plant ecology, plant taxonomy, field botany, restoration ecology, or land management
• Strong experience working with volunteers or being a volunteer
• Guiding or group outdoor management experience
• Leadership or conflict management skills
• WFA/WFR certification, professional medical training, or First Aid/CPR certification preferred; will train if needed
• Herbicide applicator license is preferred; will train if needed
• Possess reliable transportation for occasional personal transport to and from worksites (paid mileage)
• Be reliably prompt and available to work a regular schedule
• Possess a high level of fitness including ability to hike with weight and on unsure terrain, strong cardiovascular fitness, ability to lift up to and exceeding 50 lbs on a continual basis
• In accordance with partner grant requirements, CCF maintains a drug-free workplace. Applicants may be required to pass a criminal background check as a condition of employment

SCHEDULE

• Crew Season: May to September
• Work sites are located in Millcreek Canyon, Big Cottonwood Canyon, and Little Cottonwood Canyon, with occasional projects in outlying areas
• Work Schedule is 8-hour shifts, Tuesday – Saturday

BENEFITS

• Hourly salary range of $22.00 – $24.00, depending on experience
• PTO accrues at 13.3 hours per month (approximately 8 days over May – September season); PTO offered in lieu of paid holidays
• Uniform shirts provided, boot stipend provided, paid professional development training provided
• Season completion bonus