30th Annual Local Environmental Action Conference
On Sunday, March 5th, join nearly 500 citizens, activists and experts at one of the premier grassroots events in New England! The event will be held at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. This year, keynote speakers are Kandi Mossett and Lois Gibbs. Kandi Mossett is a powerful Indigenous leader and environmental justice hero on the frontlines of the fight to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. Lois Gibbs is known by many as the mother of the anti-toxics movement and the federal Superfund program who discovered her neighborhood in Love Canal was built on top of 21,000 tons of hazardous chemical waste. Local Environmental Action 2017 is a day to recognize our many victories over the year and be inspired to go back and continue the fight to protect the health and safety of our communities, our environment, and our climate. <more>
Environmentalists push for 100% renewable energy use in Massachusetts
A group of environmentalists are calling on Massachusetts to get an increasing amount of its energy from renewable sources. “With officials in Washington, D.C., threatening to roll back clean energy and climate policies, it’s time for states to step up,” said Ben Hellerstein, state director of Environment Massachusetts. The advocates are pushing for bills HD.3357 and SD.1932, sponsored by State Rep. Marjorie Decker, D-Cambridge, State Rep. Sean Garballey, D-Arlington, and State Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, which would require Massachusetts to get all of its electricity from renewable sources by 2035. All of its heating, transportation and other sectors would have to be powered by renewable energy by 2050. By Shira Schoenberg, MassLive, February 13, 2017 <more>
Standing Rock: Tribes File Last-Ditch Effort to Block Dakota Pipeline
Commentary: Forget the Anthropocene. Welcome to the Idiocene
The first glimpses of a Trump Administration in action have, to most citizens in America and abroad, been quite unnerving. Appalling. Unsettling. In other words, everything that his pre-election conduct promised us. Will the daily barrage of falsehoods, insults, and boneheaded moves give cover to the business of dismantling environmental protection?This is a bonanza for some constituencies: Late-night satirists. Tea Partiers. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. But it also plays to the news media’s worst instincts to follow, en masse, the brightest, shiniest object of the day. And while we’re doing that, the real work of dismantling government – including efforts on health, climate change, and environmental protection – are free to continue without scrutiny, or even in relative secrecy. By Peter Dykstra, Environmental Health News, February 4, 2016 <more>
Jobs
Entry Level Solar Technician – BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services – Adams, MA
Experienced Solar Technician – BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services – Adams, MA
Advocacy Center Director – Conservation Law Foundation – Boston, MA
Recruitment Director at The Public Interest Network – Boston, MA
Conservation District Grant Administrator – Pittsfield, MA
Caretaker – Cold Brook Wildlife Sanctuary – Otis, MA
Streamflow Restoration Specialist (Environmental Analyst II) – Boston
GIS Manager – Housatonic Valley Association (HVA) – Cornwall Bridge, CT
30th Annual Local Environmental Action Conference.
Sunday, March 5th at Northeastern University, Boston, MA
Join nearly 500 citizens, activists and experts at one of the premier grassroots events in New England!
This year, our keynote speakers are Kandi Mossett and Lois Gibbs. Kandi Mossett is a powerful Indigenous leader and environmental justice hero on the frontlines of the fight to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. A member of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation, Kandi is the Indigenous Environmental Network’s Extreme Energy & Just Transition Campaign Coordinator, leading the fight to raise awareness about the environmentally & socially devastating effects of hydraulic fracturing on tribal lands. We’re so honored to have her joining us to share lessons from NoDAPL and her international and national climate advocacy work.
Lois Gibbs is known by many as the mother of the anti-toxics movement and the federal Superfund program. Lois was a housewife living in Niagara Falls, New York in 1978 when she learned that her neighborhood, Love Canal, was built on top of 21,000 tons of hazardous chemical waste. After successfully organizing her neighbors to win the evacuation and cleanup of Love Canal, Lois went on to found the Center for Health, Environment & Justice and has helped communities across the country fight to protect themselves from toxic exposures. Most recently, Lois has been working on the ground in Flint, Michigan.
We are thrilled to offer nearly 20 workshops that cover a range of issues and skills – from the future of energy in New England, to organizing in the age of Trump, to the health impacts of fracked gas well-head to your kitchen stove.
Local Environmental Action 2017 is a day to recognize our many victories over the year and be inspired to go back and continue the fight to protect the health and safety of our communities, our environment, and our climate. Whether you’re a veteran participant from all 30 years of Environmental Action or a first time attendee, don’t miss out on this exciting day!
Register now for just $35. Or cosponsor as a group and receive a discount of two tickets for $60. (Breakfast and lunch included in all tickets.) Register online or call 617-747-4362 for more details. Early bird registration closes February 11th and prices go up $10 after that date.
If you have any questions, please contact us at 617-747-4362 or by email at info@toxicsaction.org.
Cohosted by Toxics Action Center, Massachusetts Climate Action Network, the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative (NEJRC) in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, the Northeastern Social Science Environmental Health Research Initiative, and many others.
Environmentalists push for 100% renewable energy use in Massachusetts
By Shira Shoenberg
MassLIVE
February 13, 2017
A group of environmentalists are calling on Massachusetts to get an increasing amount of its energy from renewable sources.
“With officials in Washington, D.C., threatening to roll back clean energy and climate policies, it’s time for states to step up,” said Ben Hellerstein, state director of Environment Massachusetts.
The advocates are pushing for bills HD.3357 and SD.1932, sponsored by State Rep. Marjorie Decker, D-Cambridge, State Rep. Sean Garballey, D-Arlington, and State Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, which would require Massachusetts to get all of its electricity from renewable sources by 2035. All of its heating, transportation and other sectors would have to be powered by renewable energy by 2050.
Hellerstein said it is impossible to predict how much the move would cost, since the technology is continuing to develop and becoming more cost-effective.
A few cities and private companies are starting to move in this direction. San Diego set a goal of getting 100 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2035. Google hopes to be powered entirely by renewable energy this year.
Jim Boyle, chairman and CEO of Sustainability Roundtable, which helps companies move toward environmentally sustainable policies, said in a conference call with reporters that the move among companies is fueled by improvements in technology, which are now globally scaled. Boyle said Massachusetts has the technical expertise, private capital and innovation economy needed to make it a global leader in the use of renewable energy.
Renewable energy sources include things like wind, solar and hydropower.
Massachusetts already has relatively high requirements for how much energy must come from renewable sources. The Global Warming Solutions Act, passed in 2008, requires Massachusetts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020 compared to 1990 levels.
This bill would go much further. Asked whether it is a realistic goal, Hellerstein said it is “not just aspirational but it is achievable” through things like improving energy efficiency and making the electric grid fully renewable-based. He said it is necessary to combat climate change and mitigate the public health impacts of fossil fuel use.
Even if new construction is built to rely on renewable energy, Hellerstein acknowledged that at some point, the state would need to create programs and incentives to help homeowners switch from oil-based heat to, for example, electric heat pumps. Some programs already exist and could be scaled up.
A new set of buses will soon roll through the city, ones that run on electricity.
Steve Linsky of Climate Action Now, an environmental group in the Pioneer Valley, said Western Massachusetts residents are moving in this direction through greater use of solar panels on houses and electric cars. The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority introduced electric buses into its fleet.
“We’re seeing in real ways the public’s desire in Western Massachusetts to forge ahead with a new generation renewable energy economy that provides more higher paying jobs, cleans our air, and protects our earth for future generations,” Linsky said.
The bill has gotten support from 53 lawmakers in the House and Senate. It is one of thousands of bills the Legislature will consider over the two-year session.
Standing Rock: Tribes File Last-Ditch Effort to Block Dakota Pipeline
Native American tribes have filed yet another legal motion seeking to halt construction of the Dakota Access pipeline. Legal experts said the attempt faces long odds but may be the tribes’ best hope for blocking the project.
The motion, filed Tuesday by the Standing Rock and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes, asks the court to reverse an easement for the pipeline that the Army Corps of Engineers granted. That easement lifted the final hurdle for the project’s completion.
The tribes said the Corps’ actions violate the National Environmental Policy Act and the Corps’ responsibility to protect the tribes’ treaty rights. They called the decision “arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law.”
The move is the latest in a long and twisting legal battle and protest movement to block the project’s Missouri River crossing under Lake Oahe, which skirts the Standing Rock Sioux reservation. The tribe says the pipeline threatens its water supply and sacred sites. In the final weeks of the Obama administration, the Army Corps declined to issue the final easement for the pipeline, saying it would conduct an environmental impact statement and would consider rerouting the pipeline.
One of Donald Trump‘s first actions as president, however, was to order a reversal of the decision and swift approval of the project. Last week, the Corps issued the easement for the Lake Oahe crossing without producing an impact statement. Final construction began. The pipeline now may be just weeks away from completion.
The tribes have had little success in their legal attempts to block construction, said Patrick A. Parenteau, a professor at Vermont Law School.
“It’s already knocked them back a few times. It’s never a good sign when you keep losing,” he said. But Parenteau said the motion contains the best arguments the tribes have put forward.
“The strongest possible argument is that the Trump administration, with no change in facts, no change in conditions, reversed the government’s position,” he said. “As the federal government, you told this court in December you had a legal obligation to do a full environmental impact statement. Now you’re telling me you don’t. Why?”
Courts generally grant agencies substantial deference on how to proceed under the environmental policy act, said Wayne J. D’Angelo, an energy and environmental lawyer with Kelley, Drye & Warren, which makes the tribes’ argument unlikely to succeed. “They’re throwing everything against the wall,” he said. “The filing reflects the last of the plaintiffs’ actions for court intervention here.”
The tribes’ best hope may be that the Corps gave no substantive explanation for why it reversed itself, said Keith Benes, a former State Department lawyer who’s now a consultant and a fellow at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy. “Courts say an agency can change their mind about something, but courts also say that an agency has to give a reason,” he said. “By doing what it did, the Army really strengthened the case that the tribes had.”
On Monday, a federal district judge denied a separate attempt by the Cheyenne River Sioux to grant a temporary restraining order after the tribe argued the pipeline could pollute water that it uses in religious ceremonies. While the judge decided not to halt construction, that case will proceed and the judge said he would rule on the merits of the challenge before oil begins to flow.
The pipeline, which is being built by Energy Transfer Partners, has triggered ongoing protests led by tribal groups. While most demonstrators have left the site of the main protest encampment in North Dakota, a few hundred remain. Earlier this month, the Corps told tribal leaders that it would begin clearing the protest site because of safety concerns and the risk of floods. This week, as warm temperatures have prompted rapid snowmelt, state officials warned that flooding could contaminate nearby rivers with garbage and waste that protesters have left behind. On Wednesday, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum ordered protesters to vacate the federal land by Feb. 22.
The easement being protested would cover a short section of the pipeline, most of which has already been constructed. This week’s filing represents one of the tribe’s last options for blocking the project. A ruling is expected quickly, but could be appealed.
D’Angelo said that while he expects the judge to deny the motion, there’s little legal precedent for how and when a new administration can shift course on a decision like this.
“There’s not a ton of case law out there on it,” he said. “I think how courts view these policy shifts back and forth is interesting, and this is an important issue.”
Commentary: Forget the Anthropocene. Welcome to the Idiocene.
February 4, 2016
By Peter Dykstra
Environmental Health News
Will the daily barrage of falsehoods, insults, and boneheaded moves give cover to the business of dismantling environmental protection?
The first glimpses of a Trump Administration in action have, to most citizens in America and abroad, been quite unnerving. Appalling. Unsettling. In other words, everything that his pre-election conduct promised us.
On an almost everyday basis, a new media maelstrom leaves us staring slackjawed at something new: The Wall. The Muslim Ban. Disputes over inaugural crowd size or millions of alleged illegal voters – those two important if only to show an Oval Office capacity for deep self-delusion. His accusations that real journalists publish fake news, while re-tweeting news that is truly fake. Launching Twitter attacks – by one pre-inaugural estimate once every 42 hours – on reporters, news organizations, sovereign nations, beauty contestants, Gold Star parents, Meryl Streep, Samuel L. Jackson, John Lewis, and at least two future members of his own cabinet, Ben Carson and Nikki Haley. A prime time Supreme Court appointment.
This is a bonanza for some constituencies: Late-night satirists. Tea Partiers. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin.
But it also plays to the news media’s worst instincts to follow, en masse, the brightest, shiniest object of the day.
And while we’re doing that, the real work of dismantling government – including efforts on health, climate change, and environmental protection – are free to continue without scrutiny, or even in relative secrecy.
The liberal watchdog group Media Matters for America has tracked the demise of climate reporting on network newscasts for years. I can’t see that trend changing under Donald J. Trump.
Traditional print media and online sources haven’t been nearly as negligent as commercial broadcast news. Old-line media like the Washington Post, New York Times, and the Associated Press have, if anything, upped their game.
AP science and environment stories are particularly widespread, but for hardly the best of reasons: Stories from the sprawling news nonprofit are being scooped up by daily newspapers whose in-house environment reporting has vanished in the industry-wide meltdown. New media and nonprofit news sites are performing nobly, but let’s face it: Collectively, we don’t rate a mention when the administration talks about war against the media.
A prominent industry newsletter, the Tyndall Report, chronicled the steep drop in issue-oriented coverage in TV news during the 2016 campaign. They saved this remarkable line for the exclamation point:
“No trade, no healthcare, no climate change, no drugs, no poverty, no guns, no infrastructure, no deficits. To the extent that these issues have been mentioned, it has been on the candidates’ terms, not on the networks’ initiative.”
This past week, while the news media obsessed over two genuinely important stories – the “Muslim Ban” and the Supreme Court appointment – here’s what fell into the shadows:
- Congress rescinded a rule requiring transparency in oil companies’ payments to foreign governments. Let’s assume Secretary of State Tillerson is okay with this.
- An EPA transition team leader floated the notion of firing two-thirds of the agency’s staff.
- The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists pushed its “Doomsday Clock” thirty seconds closer to midnight.
- The leading U.S. diplomat on the Arctic quietly walked away from the Chairmanship of the multi-nation Arctic Council
- An executive order directed federal agencies to abolish two regulations for every one new one it creates – a sort of buy one, get one free for the Koch Brothers.
- Trump promised pharmaceutical executives that the Food and Drug Administration would face a regulatory purge.
- The Keystone XL and Dakota Access Pipeline projects were revived by Executive Order.
- Congress voted to overturn the Stream Protection Rule, which guards 6,000 miles of American streams from surface mine runoff.
- The potential gutting, or outright abolition, of the Endangered Species Act.
- The House Science Committee announced a hearing titled “Making the EPA Great Again.”
Each of these items got covered. Then they went away, while the national conversation from network newscasts to trending Twitter stories featured the Ban, and such Earth-shattering figures as LeBron James, Beyoncé and Punxsutawney Phil.
And chances are that someone who reads an environmental page like this one would already know these things. But beyond the small circle of us who follow this stuff closely, the rollbacks, science purges, and outright denial of scientific fact will continue, buried at the bottom of a broad heap of absurdity.
Don’t rely on the nation’s political press to give a rip, or have a clue. Case in point: In the pundit-fest following President Trump’s Tuesday prime time special announcing Neil Gorsuch, there was little mention of the Gorsuch family’s Washington DC pedigree. Gorsuch was branded as a westerner even though he spent much of his adolescence in the capital, watching his mother Anne stage a previous attempt to dismantle EPA. A CNN reporter named Pamela Brown speculated that many conservatives, for whom “your Momma was an EPA Administrator” would be the highest of insults, would mistrust the nominee.
History much? Of all the Reagan-era appointees, Anne Gorsuch Burford would have been one of the best fits in a Trump cabinet. Her Trump-ish attempts to cripple the EPA were thwarted by a Democratic congress, and her career ended in scandal. The type of scandal that pretty much happens hourly, with little notice or no consequence, in the current administration. But there’s no need for an ambitious Washington reporter to have known that. Being steeped in knowledge of the environment beat rarely furthers your political journalism career.
Jake Fuentes on the Medium.com offers another angle on this: Many of us presume that our new President is outwardly disjointed in his public utterances. But his media success, so far, is unquestionable. Could the Muslim ban be a conscious headfake to throw the press and public into an uproar while our system of protections is dismantled?
Maybe.
But don’t expect the denial, the harassment of scientists, or the relentless contempt for environmental protection to impress very many people. When the Commander-in-Chief launches a 3 a.m., 140-character hissyfit at an environmental journalist, I’ll know we’ve arrived.
Jobs
Entry Level Solar Technician
BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services – Adams, MA
BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services, Inc is seeking a full time entry level solar technician. Minimum requirements are a High School Diploma, valid drivers license, ability to work on roofs and lift 50 pounds. Vocational education, carpentry or roofing experience and OSHA certification is a plus. Candidate should be a self starter and demonstrate an eagerness to learn. Competitive compensation and excellent benefits offered.
Please send resume & cover letter to Becca Martin at Becca@bpvs.com.
BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services, Inc
46 Howland Ave
Adams, MA 01220
HIC MA 131996
Tel.: 413-743-0152
Fax: 413-743-4827
BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services – Adams, MA
BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services, Inc is seeking a full time experienced solar technician. Minimum requirements are a High School Diploma, valid drivers license, 1 year experience in solar design and installation is required. NABCEP certification and a valid Massachusetts Construction Supervisors License is a plus. Competitive compensation based on experience and excellent benefits.
Please send resume & cover letter to Becca Martin at Becca@bpvs.com.
BPVS, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services, Inc
46 Howland Ave
Adams, MA 01220
HIC MA 131996
Tel.: 413-743-0152
Fax: 413-743-4827
Boston MA
Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) is seeking an experienced and innovative advocate on energy and the environment to lead its Massachusetts Advocacy Center, the largest of its five Advocacy Centers in New England. Working with the President, the Executive Vice President, and CLF senior staff, the Massachusetts Advocacy Center Director (ACD) will be responsible for developing and implementing an advocacy program for Massachusetts with the potential to impact law and policy throughout New England and nationally. Responsibilities include managing the Massachusetts Advocacy Center staff, working with the Massachusetts Advisory Board, and establishing and deepening relationships with members, partner organizations, businesses, government agencies, supporters, media, and the public.
This position is based in CLF’s Boston, Massachusetts office.
Qualifications
The ideal candidate will be:
A highly motivated individual with 7 or more years of advocacy experience in environment, energy, or related public interest fields.
Able to devise effective strategies for achieving advocacy goals and objectives;
Able to coordinate among diverse partners and understand how advocacy campaigns function;
Experienced in law, policy and politics at the federal, state, and local levels;
Able to take complicated issues and communicate them in a way that is accessible to new audiences
Experienced writing blogs and opinion pieces, and using social media platforms for advocacy and social change;
Able to create and implement strategic advocacy campaigns;
Experienced as a media spokesperson (print and broadcast);
Experienced in fundraising including identifying prospects and cultivating major donors and grant funders;
An individual possessing excellent interpersonal and organizational skills, having respect for a diversity of opinions, and able to work effectively in a fast-paced environment;
Accustomed to articulating and meeting measurable goals; and
Experienced managing an operating budget and professional staff.
Responsibilities
The Massachusetts ACD:
Manages the Massachusetts Advocacy Center and reports directly to the President and the Executive Vice President (EVP);
Works with program directors (PDs), the managing director of CLF Ventures and the EVP, to develop and implement advocacy goals and strategies in the state;
Serves as the hiring manager for, supervises and mentors staff advocates, legal assistants, legal interns and fellows, office managers and volunteers in her/his state, in coordination with PDs where appropriate;
Works closely with senior staff colleagues and CLF constituencies to develop and execute fundraising strategies in her/his state, manage operations and expenses of her/his state office and develop and execute media strategy in the state;
Manages and works closely with the CLF Massachusetts Advisory Board to maximize relevance, visibility and effectiveness of advocacy in Massachusetts, and to develop and execute fundraising strategies;
Represents CLF at the Massachusetts state legislature, in legal and regulatory proceedings at the state and federal level, at public forums, media events and conferences;
Develops, directs and stewards relationships with relevant NGOs, government agencies, political and legislative representatives, the business community and other stakeholders in her/his state;
Manages the Massachusetts office, including its operating budget, administrative matters, a staff of professionals, and an office manager;
Collaborates with other CLF staff at all levels on interdisciplinary matters; and
Contributes to the strategic direction and stewardship of the organization throughout the region.
Experience in a nonprofit public interest advocacy setting is highly desirable. A law degree and litigation experience at the state court, federal district court, and/or appellate court levels are preferred, but would not be required for an appropriate candidate.
Salary and Benefits
CLF offers a competitive salary, an extensive benefits plan, and an open, inclusive and accepting work environment where differences are highly respected.
To Apply
Send your resume titled “your last name-first initial-resume” (e.g. “SMITH J RESUME”) and a detailed cover letter titled “your last name-first initial-cover” (e.g. “SMITH J COVER”) to careers@clf.org. Please make “MA ACD” the subject of your e-mail. No phone calls please.
Recruitment Director at The Public Interest Network
We have organizers currently work in 25 states working with national campaigns to get our country to 100 percent renewable energy, ban the use of bee-killing pesticides, and end the overuse of antibiotics on factory farms.
Right now, we’re looking for a Recruitment director to help leverage our strong field presence, team of 30+ staff and our track record of results to help identify and hire our next leaders.
WHAT YOU’LL DO WITH IMPACT
The Recruitment Director is responsible for recruiting talented entry-level staff to run campaigns on some of our country’s biggest issues. Specific responsibilities include:
Recruitment strategy: The Recruitment Director works with staff across the country to coordinate messaging and carry out comprehensive plans to meet our overall staffing goals.
Candidate outreach: The Recruitment Director identifies top potential candidates, conducts interviews and makes hiring decisions.
Networking: The Recruitment Director develops strategic relationships with partner organizations, universities and serves as the public face for our recruitment efforts at conferences, career panels and job forums.
Tracking and data analysis: The Recruitment Director oversees our tracking and data analysis to identify trends and opportunities.
Operations management: The Recruitment Director oversees daily operations of the department, including creating and managing the department’s budget and overseeing systems and candidate communications.
During the summer, you’ll run a canvass office, building the organization by canvassing and training others to canvass.
PAY AND BENEFITS
Target annual compensation for this position is commensurate with the relevant professional experience and/or advanced degrees that a candidate has. We value experience with project management, networking and running grassroots campaigns. Impact offers a competitive benefits package.
LOCATIONS
Denver CO, Boston MA, or Washington DC
TO APPLY
http://bit.ly/2kGkuNm
APPLY by March 1, 2017
Conservation District Grant Administrator – Pittsfield, MA
January 27, 2017 – Pittsfield, MA – The Berkshire Conservation District is seeking a part-time Program Administrator to administer grant funds over a three-year period and implement a work plan to help improve basic operations and secure long-term stability to improve its sustainability as an organization. Berkshire Conservation District is a state-mandated agency whose mission is to support local agriculture and environmental sustainability in Berkshire County through education. The goals of this position are to:
-Develop work plans, budgets, and a 5-year strategic plan
-Plan and hold 1–3 events or workshops annually
-Recruit new supervisors (board members)
-Strengthen and expand current programs
Skills and experience required for the position include an ability to work independently, to multitask and stay organized, and meet deadlines. Experience writing grants, administering grant funds, and/or work with small non-profits is preferred. Candidate should have a strong interest in environmental conservation issues. A Berkshire County resident is preferred but not required. This position is based in Pittsfield and features a flexible schedule with some ability to work remotely.
To apply, please send a cover letter, resume and three professional references to BerkshireConservationDistrict@
Caretaker – Cold Brook Wildlife Sanctuary – Otis, MA
Contact Person: Stephen Hutchinson
Contact Email: shutchinson@massaudubon.org
Job Description:The Resident Caretaker serves as a friendly and professional representative of Mass Audubon to wildlife sanctuary visitors, as well as within nearby communities of the property. The caretaker provides ongoing security and monitoring of the property and responds quickly to emergency issues as they arise. He/she performs facility and/or property management duties on the property for a specified number of hours each week, often in conjunction with Mass Audubon staff and/or volunteers. Residing in a Mass Audubon residence on the premises is a requirement, which includes signing and abiding by all the provisions of a housing license. Housing provided in exchange for 8 hours/week work. Caretaker responsible for utilities. This position runs from February 1, 2017 through July 31, 2017 with a possible extension after that initial time period.
Responsibilities: Property Management 1. Ensure the maintenance and security of the properties by regularly monitoring and patrolling the premises, as well as responding to emergencies as they arise. Arrange for alternative security if absent from property for more than 24 hours. 2. Maintain grounds, buildings, and property as needed by: assisting in developing and maintaining a schedule of tasks to be completed, keeping records and reporting monthly to supervisor on tasks planned and completed; supervising contracted services, as well as volunteers; assisting with purchasing supplies and equipment;assisting with equipment and building repair and maintenance; and providing support for ecological management activities. Work independently at times as well as identify and resolve facility and property maintenance issues. 3. Assist Mass Audubon staff and volunteers with tasks related to the sanctuary or other Mass Audubon properties as directed. Visitor and Community Relations Ensure positive visitor experiences; promote membership in Mass Audubon; assist visitors with orientation and admission; install and maintain interpretative signage and exhibits; and establish and maintain positive community relations.
Qualifications: Demonstrated interest and support for the mission and goals Mass Audubon. Mature, responsible, and organized; experience in buildings and grounds maintenance, including proficiency in using hand tools, operating power tools, vehicles, and landscaping equipment, Must be at least 21 years old with a valid driver’s license. Must have at least two years related experience. Strong ability and willingness to communicate well with staff, volunteers. and thepublic.
Physical Demands: The physical demands listed are representative of those that must be met by the caretaker to successfully perform the essential functions of the position. Reasonable accommodation maybe made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position. While performing the duties of this position, the caretaker is required to talk, hear, sit,stand, and walk. The caretaker is required to bend/stoop, crawl/kneel, carry, reach, push/pull,walk over uneven terrain, and operate power tools and equipment, climb ladders, and lift up to 50 lbs. The caretaker is required to apply limited manual dexterity in combination with eye-hand coordination, such as basic keyboarding, basic hand tools and equipment, filing, operating office equipment, and operating a motor vehicle. The caretaker must have good vision to read documents for general understanding and for analytical purposes. Occasionally, the caretaker is required to review non-written materials for general observation purposes and for analytical,detailed purposes. Occasionally it is necessary for the caretaker to differentiate between colors.
Work Environment: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that the caretaker encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job. Routinely work is performed outdoors or in unheated building spaces.Work may require performing responsibilities on evenings, weekends, and holidays.
Tools and Equipment Used: The employee is required to use a personal computer and general office equipment (e.g., telephone, calculator, adding machine, copier, facsimile, etc.) as well as hand tools, ladders, power equipment, and vehicles. May require the use of two-way radios for communication with staff. Requires a valid driver’s license.
Compensation and Benefits: Housing provided in exchange for 8 hours/week work. Caretaker responsible for utilities. This position runs from February 1, 2017 through July 31, 2017 with a possible extension after initial time period.
Streamflow Restoration Specialist (Environmental Analyst II) – Boston
Date of posting: 1/26/17
Closing: The position will remain open until filled. However, first consideration will be given to those candidates who apply within the first 14 days.
The Streamflow Restoration Specialist works with partners to gather and assess high quality data on streamflow and to promote and support restoration of more natural streamflow regimes and aquatic ecosystem health. This position will support the collection and analysis of streamflow data to inform sustainable water management and ecological restoration actions. Work will involve monitoring equipment installation and maintenance, field measurements, local outreach and education, volunteer coordination, technical and policy support, and data analysis and modeling. The Streamflow Restoration Specialist will also coordinate and manage holistic streamflow restoration projects, and provide technical assistance, such as monitoring support, to the Division of Ecological Restoration’s river and wetland restoration projects. This is anticipated to be a one-year contract position. Interested candidates can learn more about DER and view the full job announcement here: http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/der/.
To apply online, please visit the MassCareers website at
https://massanf.taleo.net/careersection/ex/jobdetail.ftl?job=160008O5
For more information about the position, please contact Michelle Craddock at michelle.craddock@state.ma.us or 617-626-1544.
Michelle Craddock
Watershed Ecologist
Division of Ecological Restoration
Department of Fish and Game
251 Causeway Street Boston, MA 02114
617-626-1544
GIS Manager – Housatonic Valley Association (HVA) –
Cornwall Bridge, CT
Full-Time Position Opening. The Housatonic Valley Association (HVA) seeks a skilled and motivated Geographic Information Systems (GIS) professional, with strong geospatial expertise with ERSI’s desktop and online platforms, a facility for problem-solving and a talent for creating maps that tell a compelling story. GIS is a core competency for HVA, a nationally recognized regional watershed organization and accredited land trust working across 1,250,000 acres in western New England and eastern New York.
Position Description: This is a full-time position with benefits and salary commensurate with experience. Working from our main office in Cornwall Bridge, Connecticut, the GIS manager is a core member of the leadership team. This person maintains and enhances natural resource and parcel-based GIS data for the entire Housatonic Valley Watershed across portions of three states and multiple jurisdictions. The GIS Manager will develop geospatial models to perform spatial and tabular analysis, and publish cartographic products as static paper maps and dynamic web-based applications.
Required Qualifications:
Proven capabilities with ArcGIS Desktop 10.4.1 and ArcGIS Online Proven Project Management Skills, both individually and in a team setting
Enthusiasm to remain current in GIS technologies
Passion for Environmental Protection and Land Conservation Strong cartographic instincts Positive, solution-oriented Willingness to assist with non-GIS related activities
Valid Driver’s License Valid Employment Status (Applicants with H-1B Visas must confirm they could work for HVA)
Desired Qualifications: Familiarity with GIS data sources for CT, MA and NY
Experience with GPS and mobile GIS data collection Familiarity with ArcGIS Story Maps Experience using Data Driven Pages, ModelBuilder
Experience managing ArcGIS Online Organization Account
Email cover letter, resume, examples of recent GIS work and references to tim.abbott@hvatoday.org. The position will remain vacant until filled.
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