Seasonal Stewardship Technician

Agency: Lake County Parks Department, Gibson Woods in Hammond IN 

Salary: $17.00/hr 

Terms of Position: This position is considered a seasonal position full time position or a permanent part time position. An employee cannot work more than 1,040 hours in a year (20 hours per week over a year, or 40 hours over 26 weeks). This position has a current end date of October 2024. 

Position Summary: The Lake County Parks and Recreation Stewardship Technician role is primarily based at Gibson Woods Nature Preserve, a state dedicated nature preserve that is a part of the larger EPA designated Grand Calumet Area of Concern. The sites involved in the project are tucked into a degraded, fragmented, industrial and urban environment where dune and swale habitat once was abundant. 

Gibson Woods and Tolleston Ridges, the two Lake County Parks properties in the project are high quality remnants of globally imperiled dune and swale habitat and is home to state threatened and endangered plant species. The greatest threat to these rare habitats is ongoing habitat degradation caused by the spread of invasive species and disruption of natural fire regimes. 

The work at Gibson Woods consists primarily of ecological restoration activities such as the selective chemical or mechanical control of invasive plant species which threatens the rare and fragmented native habitats. Technicians may also assist on the preparation for prescribed burns and even the opportunity to assist on prescribed burns, season and conditions dependent. The Stewardship Technicians work closely with partner organizations and agencies also working on the Grand Calumet Area of Concern, with the opportunity to work on other sites as well. 

Qualifications: 

• Ability to work in variable weather conditions, at remote locations for long periods of time in isolated settings, on difficult and hazardous terrain and wetlands, and under physically demanding circumstances.
• Ability to carry a 35-pound backpack sprayer.
• Ability to be exposed to hazards such as extreme heat, biting and stinging insects, ticks and poison ivy. Personal protective equipment/supplies will be provided, as necessary.
• Candidates shall have a minimum of a high school diploma or GED or one (1) year of work experience. (Some college and work experience is preferred.) A valid driver’s license is required.

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Completion of some college coursework in wildlife management, natural resources, biology, ecology, forestry and/or related areas of study.
• Ability to understand and apply (through on the job training and using previous, relevant experience) basic biological principles, plant identification, herbicide application, invasive plant life histories and management techniques, and the ecological management of forests, wetlands, and prairie habitats.