Seasonal Water Quality Monitoring Lead

Who we are:

Friends of the Bay is an environmental conservation and advocacy organization located in Oyster Bay. Our mission is to preserve, protect and restore the ecological integrity and productivity of the Oyster Bay/Cold Spring Harbor Estuary and the surrounding watershed.

The Position:

Friends of the Bay participates in Save the Sound’s Unified Water Study (UWS) Tier I and Tier II. We are seeking a Water Quality Monitoring Lead for the 2024 monitoring season.

The WQM Lead will perform tasks 1-2 days per week from May through November. (Average of 15-25 hours per week – Approx. 450 hours total for the season.)

Qualifications:

• Have small boat handling experience and a minimum of a New York Safe Boating certification.
• Possess a NY state driver’s license and have reliable vehicle transport.
• Be detail oriented and able to follow systematic instructions and procedures with precision and accuracy.
• Be comfortable learning new and various forms of technology ranging from water quality monitoring equipment and video equipment to computer data entry and messaging programs.
• Be a good communicator.
• Be able to lift up to 50 pounds without assistance.

Responsibilities:

Overall responsibilities:

• Complete Tier 1 training on 4/8/24 at Save the Sound in Larchmont, NY.
• Complete Tier 2 training on 4/11/24 at Save the Sound in Larchmont, NY.
• Lead 2 volunteer training sessions in mid-late April.
• Coordinate volunteers for all monitoring events from May through October.
• Adhere to the UWS Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP).
• Adhere to all components of the UWS equipment loan program.
• Clean and maintain all equipment before and after every monitoring event.
• Conduct pre and post calibration before and after every monitoring
• Troubleshoot any issues with equipment or data entry with Save the Sound’s UWS field and lab technicians.
• Maintain data sheets for each monitoring event and excel spreadsheets for overall data.
• Submit all data for Tier 1 and Tier 2 to Save the Sound by the November 30, 2024 deadline.
• Respond to all communications with Friends of the Bay, Save the Sound, and volunteers in a timely fashion (within 24 hours).

Tier I Responsibilities:

• Take water quality readings at 14 open water stations throughout Oyster Bay, Cold Spring Harbor, and Mill Neck Creek (within 3 hours of sunrise, 2 x per month from May through October).
• Collect bacteria samples at all 14 sites.
• Drive bacteria samples to Nassau County Health department at the end of each sampling trip.
• Collect 4 chlorophyll a samples at the dock at the end of every Tier I monitoring event.
• Bring chlorophyll a samples to UPS for shipment to Save the Sound.
• Conduct 3 qualitative macrophyte (seaweed and eelgrass) surveys at 8 shoreline stations (1 x per week for 3 weeks, between July 15 and August 8).
• Input data for weather conditions, water quality readings, bacteria samples and macrophyte surveys.

Tier II Responsibilities:

• Take nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) samples at 10 open water stations throughout Oyster Bay, Cold Spring Harbor, and Mill Neck Creek. (2 x per month from May through October).
• Assemble, calibrate, and deploy 4 continuous dissolved oxygen (DO) and salinity (CT) crates at 4 dock stations in Mill Neck Creek, Oyster Bay, inner and outer Cold Spring Harbor.
• Clean and retrieve data from DO and CT loggers (every 7-10 days from May through October).
• Conduct 1 open-water quantitative macrophyte video survey (between July 15th and August 8).
• Input data for N & P samples, DO & CT loggers and macrophyte survey.