Forestry Technician (Wilderness Ranger)

GS-0462-5 permanent seasonal

Alaska Region – Tongass National Forest

Admiralty Island National Monument and Juneau Ranger District (Juneau, Alaska)

We are outreaching to fill the best job in the world!

Are you interested in being a Wilderness Ranger for four of the most beautiful and rugged Wilderness units in the Forest Service? Tracy Arm-Ford’s Terror Wilderness, Kootznoowoo Wilderness, Chuck River and Endicott River Wilderness are on the Juneau Ranger District and Admiralty Island of the Tongass National Forest, and we need someone with boating, kayaking and people skills for some exciting work.  To express interest in this position, please complete the attached Outreach Response Form and send to jneary@fs.fed.us by close of business January 27, 2012.  For additional information on this position or the duty location, please contact John Neary at (907) 789-6224.                   The largest temperate rainforest on earth

Position Title:  Forestry Technician (Wilderness Ranger), GS-0462-5 

Tour of Duty:  This position will be advertised as an 13/13 appointment. This consists of 13 pay-periods (or 6 months) of the year in pay status. 

Duty Station:  Juneau, Alaska

Description of Position Duties:  You’ll join a team of wilderness rangers who are responsible for a variety of duties.  Here is a snap-shot:

Help manage theTracyArm – Ford’sTerrorWilderness, theadjoiningChuckRiverWilderness , the Kootznoowoo Wilderness of Admiralty Island National Monument, and theremoteEndicottRiverWilderness.

Implement strategies for succeeding with each wilderness area in the 10 Year Wilderness Stewardship Challenge.   In 2004 the Chief challenged our agency to successfully manage all 407 national forest wilderness areas for air quality, invasive species, fire, opportunities for solitude, recreation site monitoring, education and other criteria. As we rise to the Challenge, our wilderness rangers are becoming stewards of a broader landscape of ideas and information. We help manage a whole place instead of separate resources.

Develop and manage agreements with cruiselines and small to mid-size boat operations in support of our Wilderness Best Management Practices program.

Your crew boards tour boats and cruise vessels to deliver interpretive talks on wilderness and climate change to audiences ranging from six to four hundred.

Through an agreement with the State of Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, our rangers are certified to read the visible emissions of cruise ship stacks for compliance with state and federal standards.

In the Kootznoowoo Wilderness known as “Fortress of the Bear” you will help control invasive plants, monitor vessel traffic from kayaks, cut firewood for cabins using primitive tools, and more.

Through a partnership with the State Department of Fish and Game and the University of Alaska Southeast, our rangers watch harbor seals closely for signs of disturbance by vessels and to count their numbers at the peak of the molting and pupping seasons.

You’ll learn to measure the recession of glaciers from fixed photo points, monitor solitude, conduct surveys for invasive weeds and collect unusual samples of marine life that wash ashore.

A typical day may also include campsite inventories, shore-based visitor contacts, and monitoring outfitter-guide operations.

Due to work conditions in bear country, a successful candidate will be required to carry a firearm and is subject to drug testing.

Location:

The district office is located in Juneau, Alaska.  Admiralty Island National Monument and Juneau Ranger District staffs are co-located at 8510 Mendenhall Loop Road, two miles from the renowned Mendenhall glacier.

Tracy Arm-Fords Terror Wilderness and the adjacent Chuck River Wilderness are located about 50 miles southeast of Juneau, and 70 miles north of Petersburg, Alaska, and adjacent to Stephen’s Passage within the Tongass National Forest. Kootznoowoo Wilderness is located on Admiralty Island about 15 miles from Juneau.

Access:

The most common access is by boat using Stephen’s Passage. Float planes from Juneau and Petersburg are also used as a means of access. Large tour vessels and smaller commercial cruise boats frequently ply these waters along their normal tour routes.

Please note, the majority of summer months will be spent kayaking in the field, and staying at remote field camps.  Field work requires performing arduous tasks in wet, cold, and mountainous terrain. Other work is performed in an office setting, interacting with other district resource specialists, Tongass National Forest stakeholders, and the general public.  You’ll be utilizing databases and other tasks in support of district goals.

For information on the position:

Contact Person:                John Neary                                                        

Phone Number(s):          (907) 789-6224                                                  

Email address(es):           jneary@fs.fed.us 

If you are interested in the position, please complete the attached outreach form and return to John Neary by close of business January 27, 2012.

Duty Station Information:

The City of Juneau is the capital of Alaska which originated as a bustling gold mining community founded in 1880.  It is the only State capital that cannot be reached by road.  Juneau is on the mainland, and lies along the famed Inside Passage, which is a maze of protected waterways weaving around over a thousand islands.  This area of the State is commonly known as “southeast” or “the panhandle”.

The Coast Range Mountains rise abruptly from the tidal flats of Gastineau Channel making a spectacular backdrop for downtown Juneau.  The city has a population of approximately 30,000 people, and has strong Alaska Native, Filipino, and Asian representation.  Diversity is found in the many civic and community organizations.

Juneau is located within the boundaries of America’s largest National Forest, the Tongass, which boasts nearly 17 million acres.  Juneau is a major service center for southeast Alaska and provides a diverse selection of employment opportunities and businesses. 

Weather

Because southeast Alaska is adjacent to the North Pacific, it has a maritime climate characterized by relatively mild, cloudy, and wet weather.  Average annual precipitation ranges from 92 inches downtown, to 53 inches at airport (located 9 miles from the downtown area).  Average annual snowfall is 98 inches at sea level.  The average annual minimum temperature is 36.7 degrees, and the average annual maximum temperature is 48.5 degrees.  Winter temperatures rarely drop below zero, and summer temperatures rarely reach into the 80’s.

On the longest day of the year, the sun rises about four in the morning and sets about ten in the evening.  On the shortest day of the year, there are approximately six hours and forty minutes of daylight.

Tongass National Forest website:  http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass/

Thank you for your interest in this position!

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status (not all prohibited bases apply to all programs).  Persons with disabilities who require means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotapes, etc) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination write:  USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Ave, SW, Washington, DC  20250-9401 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice or TDD).  USDA Forest Service is an equal opportunity