Rangeland Assessment Technician

The Great Basin Institutes Ecological Monitoring (EM) Program focuses on collecting monitoring data to inform conservation and land management in the Intermountain West, while providing emerging professionals opportunities to begin or enhance their careers. This program provides hands-on experience with terrestrial vegetation monitoring and ecological landscape assessments.

One component of the GBI EM program works in cooperation with the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) to implement NDOWs Vegetation Health Assessment (VHA) program. The goal of NDOW's VHA program is to provide ecological monitoring data to inform conservation planning and adaptive management decisions. This data is used by resource specialists and land managers to inform future resource management decisions focused on protecting Nevadas biodiversity and restoring productive terrestrial ecosystems to support wildlife.

For the 2025 field season, GBI is recruiting Rangeland Assessment Technicians to work with GBI and NDOW staff to implement novel rapid ecological assessment methods to evaluate restoration treatment success. Under the supervision of a Project Manager, technicians will characterize vegetation and site condition on several pilot post-wildfire sites primarily located in eastern Nevada on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands.

During the first month of training, the typical schedule is five days on (Monday-Friday) and two days off. During field work, car camping for eight day hitches (Wednesday-Wednesday) in remote locations will be required, followed by six days off (Thursday-Tuesday). At the end of the field season, there are three weeks of office work, primarily focused on data QC.

Field work will include:

• Maintaining safety awareness and practices;
• Extensive 4x4 driving on unmaintained roads;
• Navigating off-trail to sampling sites;
• Establishing sampling plots and transects;
• Collecting vegetation data (including species inventory, forb diversity, species abundance, sagebrush shape, foliar cover, canopy gap, and herbaceous and woody heights);
• Making qualitative treatment assessments; and
• Taking photo-points.

Additional duties include:

• Regular communication with GBI support staff and agency staff;
• Participation in GBI and agency trainings;
• Using Field Maps and Survey 123 software to collect field data;
• Managing ArcGIS Online databases;
• Identifying plants to species using dichotomous keys; and
• Employing and managing extensive QA/QC data checks.

Timeline and Location:

• 4-person vegetation monitoring crew
• Based out of NDOW Field Office in Reno, Nevada
  • Crews will travel across Northern Nevada to monitoring sites on private, BLM, and/or USFS land, depending on the project.
• Duration: 21 weeks from early March August
  • Tentative start date: March10th, 2025

Compensation:

• $19-21 per hour, depending on qualifications
• $150 bi-weekly housing stipend; untaxed, used at applicants discretion as housing is not provided
• $32.30 monthly cell phone stipend
• $41 camping per diem for every night in the field (up to 7 units in an 8-day work week)
• Affordable Care Act Compliant Health insurance including vision and dental provided at no cost to the employee starting the first day of the month following employment start date.
• Paid state holidays
• Paid personal leave, amount dependent on contract length

Minimum approximate Bi-weekly Compensation before taxes
Office: $1,670 (~$20.87 per hour)
Average Field: $1,957 (~$24.46 per hour)

Technical requirements:

• Experience, education, or a combination of both in botany and/or range management to meet the following:
  • Bachelors degree in botany, ecology, or other natural resources with coursework in botany or plant sciences; AND/OR
  • A minimum of 1 year of field data collection identifying plants, preferred
• Field botany experience preferred;
• Experience conducting vegetation surveys using various monitoring protocols, including standard rangeland monitoring protocols, photo plots, and site observations, preferred;
• Ability to collect and manage data of a high degree of quality;
• Ability to read, interpret and navigate using topographic maps;
• Experience navigating and collecting coordinates with hand-held GPS units; and
• Experience safely operating agency 4WD trucks on paved and unpaved roads, often in remote areas on unimproved roads;

Additional requirements:

• Familiarity with native and invasive plants of the sampling area and associated natural resource issues, preferred;
• Willingness and ability to productively work in a fast-paced, dynamic setting while consistently maintaining high performance standards through a strong work and team ethic to accomplish goals;
• Possess a valid, state-issued drivers license and clean driving record;
• Ability to communicate effectively with team members, program staff, and a diverse public;
• Ability to accurately complete administrative tasks on time i.e. timesheet, paperwork, etc;
• Possess or learn excellent organizational skills;
• Familiarity with best practices for field safety and Leave No Trace principles;
• Experience in and willingness to spend up to seven consecutive nights camping with no amenities in remote locations;
• Willingness to work irregular hours (e.g., early mornings, long days); and
• Ability to work in harsh and rapidly changing environments, work in all types of weather conditions, traverse uneven terrain for up to 10 miles, carry upwards of 40 pounds in a backpack, and otherwise maintain good physical condition.

Please indicate your location and/or project preferences if you applied to multiple Ecological Monitoring Program positions in your cover letter when applying. Application review will continue until all positions are filled. Please email any questions regarding this position to: Allison Peterson-Park, apetersonpark@thegreatbasininstitute.org and Blake Ferrell, bferrell@thegreatbasinsinstitute.org.