San Pedro Riparian NCA Recreation Intern (BLM Tucson) – AmeriCorps

San Pedro Riparian NCA Recreation Intern (BLM Tucson) – AmeriCorps (1 opening)

Conservation Legacy Program: Arizona Conservation Corps

Site Location: BLM Tucson Field Office, 3201 E. Universal Way, Tucson, AZ 85756

Term of Service:

• Start Date: 03/24/2025
• End Date: 2/26/2026
• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 1700 Hours 

Purpose:

This is an AmeriCorps position with Arizona Conservation Corps (AZCC), which is an AmeriCorps program of Conservation Legacy. The member selected for this position will be serving at BLM Tucson Field Office as an AmeriCorps member with Arizona Conservation Corps, and completing service projects for the Tucson Field Office. 

AZCC aims to continue the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930's, and is focused on connecting youth, young adults, and recent era military veterans with communities and conservation service projects on public lands. AZCC operates programs across Arizona that engage individuals and strengthen communities through service and conservation. AZCC has program offices in Flagstaff and Tucson. 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM):

The BLM Tucson Field Office (TFO) manages more than 600,000 acres of desert, mountains, and grasslands within five southeastern Arizona counties and shares the international border with Mexico. The field office is responsible for stewardship of eight National Landscape Conservation System units: San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA), Las Cienegas National Conservation Area (LCNA), Ironwood Forest National Monument, four wilderness areas, 63 miles of river suitable for Wild and Scenic River designation and the Gila River Canyons passage of the Arizona National Scenic Trail. The Tucson Field Office also oversees six properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places and seven Areas of Critical Environmental Concern. Public lands within the Tucson Field Office also provide excellent opportunities for outdoor recreation including world-renowned birding along the San Pedro River. The Tucson Field Office is a part of and shares office space with the BLM Gila District Office.

Description of Duties:

The BLM Tucson Field Office (TFO) is looking to bring on an intern to maintain, improve, and implement land use plan decisions for the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA) through sustainable and restorative methods. This position would help to ensure a range of outdoor recreation opportunities to help meet existing and expected needs while protecting natural resources on all public lands in the SPRNCA.

The intern in this position will be working with the TFO to conserve, protect, and enhance the variety of settings in the area to provide recreation and education opportunities that promote appropriate use, enjoyment, and appreciation of the natural and cultural resources and to further the purposes of the SPRNCA.

The intern will help to patrol and monitor developed and backcountry recreation sites and points of interest sites and assist with preventative measures to negate unauthorized routes per the Transportation Management Plan.

Other duties and projects will include trail maintenance and construction, data collection and inventory, and facilities maintenance. Trail work will include using various tools and equipment to maintain, repair, and construct trails. Data collection activities will include developing sign, road, trail, and dispersed campsite inventories.

The intern will be exposed to job shadowing and mentoring provided by the park rangers. Shadowing and mentoring would include fence construction and repairs, proper maintenance of structures such as vault toilets and administrative buildings, sign construction and maintenance, trail construction and maintenance, data collection of recreation users and types of uses, coordination with partnerships and

volunteers, and maintenance of recreation sites.

Essential Responsibilities and Functions:

• Install, maintain, and replace fire rings, picnic tables, benches, wildlife proof trash cans, and signs as needed.
• Inspect, clean, and stock vault toilets, clean floors.
• Empty trash containers and ensure that trash containers have appropriate trash bags.
• Observe and inventory recreation use types and vehicles.
• Ensure that recreation site fencing is in good condition and repair fences as needed.
• Greet recreation users.
• Monitor the condition of facilities and resources.
• Ensure information boards and signs are readable. Replace weathered signs and flyers as needed.
• Reduce vegetation overgrowth at campsites, camp roads, and recreation sites (mowing, vegetation trimming/clearing).
• Monitor and maintain trail systems, hike assigned trails to document condition of trails.
• Repair trail tread as needed.
• Check erosion control devices or add as needed.
• Ensure that vegetation is reduced and not affecting trail path.
• Ensure that trail signs are readable and replace signs that have been weathered.
• Install new trail signs along entry points and along trail system at locations identified by park rangers.
• Assist volunteers or partnerships with trail projects.
• Use various tools and equipment to maintain and construct trails.
• Install water-bars, build rock walls and trail steps, repair trail tread, and install and/or repair signs.
• Mitigate user-created routes with natural materials and install signage, post, or fence barriers.
• Install and collect traffic counters at designated locations in the NCA.
• Install new road system signs along entry points.
• Post road and trail system maps at designated locations identified by park rangers.
• Installing and maintain wash barriers as needed to prevent off-road driving on washes along designated road systems.
• Develop sign inventory. Sign inventory to consist of GPS coordinates, picture of the sign, and condition of the sign.
• Develop road and trail inventory. Road and trail inventory to consist of GPS coordinates, picture of road and trail, and condition of road and trail.
• Develop dispersed campsite inventory. Inventory would include GPS coordinates, picture of campsite, and campsite conditions.
• Monitor special recreation permitted events and activities at group sites, designated recreation sites, and roads or trails to ensure operating plan and permit compliance in the field.

Qualifications:

• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• At least 18 years of age.
• Has received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate; or has not dropped out of elementary or secondary school to enroll as an AmeriCorps participant, and agrees to obtain a high school diploma or its equivalent prior to using the AmeriCorps Education Award.
• Agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check.

• Willing to work outdoors.
• Familiarity with tools and equipment for outdoor recreation maintenance. Examples may include
• shovels, picks, rakes, Pulaski, pole saw, hand saw, pressure washer, weed trimmers, loppers.
• Familiarity with reading maps and mapping applications on laptops, phones, or tablets.
• Ability to drive off-road with 4x4 vehicle.
• Able to lift a minimum of 50 pounds.
• Ability to talk to people while working in the field.
• Highly self-motivated.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with outdoor recreation management either with a degree (Associate or Bachelor’s) or previous experience with a federal agency (BLM, Forest Service, National Park Service) or state and local government.
• Able to walk and hike distances of more than one mile.

Physical Requirements:

Conservation Legacy is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals and will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to perform essential functions. Some positions may require periodic overnight travel, non-traditional hours, ability to move across varied terrain, use program-specific tools and a range of technology on an infrequent or frequent basis. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects. Ability to safely drive an organizational vehicle may also be required for some positions. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Time Requirements:

• Typically, this position is expected to serve Monday – Friday, 40 hours per week, but exact service schedules may vary. A half hour lunch break will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service.
• Member may be required to participate in national, state, or local service projects or events as part of their service term.

Orientation and Training:

• Member will receive an Arizona Conservation Corps Individual Placement Program New Member Orientation at start of service that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.

Benefits:

• Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $7,395.00 with successful completion of position.
• Living Allowance of $500 per week.

• Additional Benefit of $200 per week.

• Public Lands Corps Certificate*
• Healthcare Coverage provided by The Corps Network and Cigna.
• Childcare Coverage.
• Qualifies for Student Loan forbearance and Interest Payment reimbursement through AmeriCorps.

*To be eligible for a Public Lands Corps certificate, members must be between the ages of 18-30, or up to 35 if a military veteran, inclusive, at the time the individual begins the term of service and must complete 640 service hours or more to qualify.

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of hours, the member has satisfactorily completed assignments, and if the member has met other performance criteria that were clearly communicated at the beginning of the term of service. Reporting requirements include, but are not limited to, bi-weekly timesheets and accomplishment tracking.

Supervisor Name and Contact Information:

This position reports to Jody Barker, Park Ranger with the Bureau of Land Management’s Tucson Field Office.

To Apply:  

Please submit a resume and cover letter along with the online application by clicking the APPLY link on this page.

If you have questions, contact AZCC’s Individual Placement Coordinator Preston Sands at psands@conservationlegacy.org. 

Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to hiring a breadth of diverse professionals and encourage members of diverse groups to apply. This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, and military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public in appropriate languages.

We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with AmeriCorps requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Salary : $200 - $500