Clarification from the agency

Applications will be accepted from any U.S. Citizen. DIRECT HIRING AUTHORITY will be used to fill this position.

Salary: GS-7 - $43,683 per annum to $56,790 per annum
GS-9: $53,422 per annum - $69,462 per annum

This position has been categorized as a Prescribed Fire and Fuels Specialist under IFPM, moderate complexity and requires selectee to meet the minimum qualification standards for IFPM prior to being placed into the position. For more information on IFPM, click here.

Has program responsibility for prescribed fire, fuels management, smoke management, and wildland fire within New River Gorge NR. Primary responsibilities of the positions are (1) preparing and carrying out prescribed fire plans, fire effects, manual and mechanical hazardous fuel treatments, and smoke and wildland fire use monitoring; and, (2) wildland fire preparedness and suppression.

• Provide professional expertise in the development and implementation of multiple resource objectives.
• Develops and analyzes fuels treatment alternatives to support management decisions while adhering to applicable laws, regulations, policies and guidelines.
• Serves as a member of an interdisciplinary team planning, developing, and implementing land management plans, compliance documents and agreements.
• Participate in the development, review, and modification of the park fire management plan.
• Implements and administers fire activities, wildland fire use, and fuels management activities to ensure targets are achieved, management objectives are met and mitigation measures are adequate.
• In addition to fuels management operations, supports wildland fire suppression activities.
• Also conducts field surveys to determine the location of hazardous fuel conditions.
• Assists in wildland prevention and preparedness programs and activities.
• Prepares and reviews plans such as annual operating plans, training plans, fire suppression plans, safety plans, etc.
• Directs and performs wildland fire suppression efforts in initial attack and in follow-up actions to safely and effectively control wildland fires
• First Aid and CPR training will be provided.

Physical Demands: Work is normally sedentary. Field work requires prolonged standing, walking over uneven ground, and recurring bending, reaching, lifting and carrying of items weighing over 50 pounds and shared lifting and carrying of heavier items, and similar strenuous activities requiring at least average agility and dexterity.

Working Conditions: Work is performed both in-doors (office) and out-of-doors (field work). Office conditions require long periods of sitting, working with computers and general lifting, and bending and reaching. Field work conditions are performed in various conditions and often involve steep terrain where surfaces may be extremely uneven, rocky, covered with vegetation, and in smoky conditions. Temperatures may vary. Risks include smoke inhalation, fire entrapment, snake or insect bites and stings, exposure to excessive machinery noise, and falling and rolling material. Personnel must adjust and cope with exposure to adverse weather elements, dust and smoke, poor sleeping and eating conditions and unpredictable sets of circumstances. The hazardous nature of the work requires that personal protective equipment be work (boots, hardhat, gloves, flame resistant clothing, etc.)

Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.

Area Information: This position is located at the New River Gorge National River, which is in rural southern West Virginia. The temperatures range from below freezing in the winter to above 90 degrees during the peak of the summer. The region routinely sees abundant precipitation in the form of rain and snow and the humidity can be high during the summer months. Rental housing is available in the local community and is moderately priced. There are multiple small cities and towns in the area that provide a wide range of amenities. Outdoor recreation opportunities are abundant in the area and include but are not limited to hiking, mountain biking, climbing, whitewater rafting, fishing, and hunting. More information can be found at www.nps.gov/neri

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
• Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
• You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use.
• Prior to appointment, you must be determined physically fit by an authorized government physician to perform strenuous and physically demanding duties; and also pass a medical examination (which includes vision, hearing, cardiovascular, and mobility of extremities) given by an authorized government physician. You will also be required to undergo periodic medical examinations throughout employment.
• The Work Capacity Test (WCT-Pack Test) as a method for assessing an employee's fitness levels for fire qualifications in the positions covered by this recruitment notice. Employees required to pass a WCT-Pack Test as a "condition of employment"
• You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You may be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.
• You may be required to complete training and operate a four-wheel drive vehicle.
• You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
• If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
• Subject to frequent extended travel up to 14 nights a month particularly during fire season, and you must obtain a government charge card for travel.
• You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement 05/26/2021, unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount qualified specialized experience.

This position has been identified as one of the key fire management positions under the Interagency Fire Program management (IFPM) Standard. This position has been categorized as a Prescribed Fire and Fuels Specialist moderate complexity, and requires selectee to meet the minimum qualification standards for IFPM prior to moving into the position.
For more information on IFPM, click here.

Selective Factors: The applicant must have possessed all the following National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) incident management qualifications and training requirements to be considered eligible for this position:

1. RXB2 -Prescribed Fire Burn Boss, Type 2
2. ENGB or CRW or HMGB, Single Resource Boss, Crew, or Single Resource Boss, Engine, or Helicopter

Selectees for IFPM positions requiring currency will be required to obtain and maintain currency for the NWCG qualifications listed above.

AND
Candidates must possess a minimum of 90-days of wildland firefighting experience, gained through fire line work in containment, control, suppression or use of wildland fire. You must clearly demonstrate this experience in your resume, including the months, days and hours per week at which the work was performed in order to be considered.

A minimum of 90 days of wildland firefighting experience is required to meet qualifications for secondary (administrative) covered positions. The Department of Interior defines wildland firefighting experience as: On-the-line wildland firefighting experience gained through containment, control, suppression, or use of wildland fire. This experience can be met by serving in a temporary, seasonal, or equivalent private sector fire position for no less than 90 days. Periods of wildland firefighting experience, gained through militia and rural fire departments, can also be credited, as long as the total amount of this experience equates to at least 90 days. Wildland fire is defined as any non-structure fire that occurs in the wildland. Two distinct types of wildland fire have been defined and include wildfire and prescribed fires as follows: Wildfire: Unplanned ignitions or prescribed fires that are declared wildfires. Prescribed Fires: Planned ignitions. This description includes only fireline experience on a Prescribed Fire; it does not include experience in the planning stages. Prescribed fire experience must be supplemented by fire suppression experience in order to be creditable as previous wildland firefighting experience. You must clearly demonstrate this experience in your resume, including the months, days and hours per week at which the work was performed in order to be considered.

Basic Qualification Requirement:

1. Degree: Biological Sciences, Agriculture, Natural Resource Management, Chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position.
NOTE: The following additional subject fields have been determined to be acceptable as directly related degree programs for fire management jobs in this series: wildland fire management, forestry agronomy, biochemistry, biometrics, ecology, fishery biology, general fish and wildlife administration, horticulture, natural resources management, physiology, plant physiology, rangeland management, soil science, wildlife biology, zoology, agricultural extension, animal science, botany, entomology, genetics, microbiology, pharmacology, plant pathology, plant protection and quarantine, soil conservation, toxicology, wildlife refuge management. In addition, natural resources related disciplines include chemistry, environmental sciences (not environmental or natural resources policy), hydrology, outdoor recreation if it has a natural resource emphasis, physics, fire management, earth sciences, geology, meteorology related weather, climate, physical geography if it has a natural resource emphasis, and watershed management. You must provide a legible copy of your transcript(s)

-OR-

2. Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. You must provide a legible copy of your transcript(s). Courses equivalent to a major may be defined as 24 semester hours in biological sciences, natural resources, wildland fire management, forestry or agriculture equivalent to a major field, of study, plus appropriate experience or additional education that is comparable to that acquired through successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in the biological sciences, agriculture, or natural resources.

In addition to meeting the basic entry qualification requirements, applicants must have specialized experience and/or directly related education in the amounts shown below:

Applicants must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by closing date of the announcement:

GS-7: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-5 grade level is required in addition to meeting the basic qualification requirements. Experience must demonstrate an understanding of fire behavior relative to fuels, weather, and topography and how fire affects natural and cultural resources. Examples of GS-5 experience may include:

• Performed duties which provided a basic understanding of wildland fire management concepts, theories and practices including the assessment of fire effects on cultural and/or natural resources.
• Assisted other fire management staffs in the development of complex presentations; presented or conducted simple presentations of fire management concepts, topics, information.
• Researched technical reports and/or other sources to obtain information used by higher graded professionals; applies basic formulas to routine calculations;
• Participated in the development and/or implementation of wildland fire management plans. Carried out initial attack incident management strategies and tactics to meet the stated resource objectives.

-OR-

EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least 1 year of graduate-level education. You must provide a copy of your transcript(s).

-OR-

Bachelor's degree with Superior Academic Achievement. You must provide a copy of your transcript(s).

GS-9: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-7 grade level is required in addition to meeting the basic qualification requirements. Experience must demonstrate an understanding of fire behavior relative to fuels, weather, and topography and how fire affects natural and cultural resources. Examples of GS-07 experience may include:

• Wildland fire activities (such as planning and/or implementing prescribed fire or managing wildfires) to ensure resource objectives can be met from a fire management standpoint.
• Developing and/or implementing initial attack incident management strategies and tactics to meet the stated resource objectives.
• Implementing mitigation measures during wildland fire activities to protect sensitive habitats, endangered species, sensitive plants, or cultural values.

-OR-

EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least a Master's (or equivalent graduate degree). You must provide a copy of your transcript(s).

-OR-

2 academic years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree. You must provide a copy of your transcript(s).

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Applicants will be evaluated based on how whether they meet the qualification requirements.

Upon receipt of the completed application package, a review of your application will be made to ensure basic qualification requirements are met.

This vacancy will be filled through a Direct Hire Authority. Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to positions filled under this Authority. All qualified applicants, as determined by the SHRO, will be referred for consideration. While managers and supervisors are not required to conduct interviews, it is highly recommended that they do so in order to assess the competencies of each applicant.

If an applicant's resume is incomplete or does not support the requirements for minimum qualifications or specialized experience a rating of "ineligible" or "not qualified" will be applied and no consideration for employment will be granted.

If a determination is made that an applicant has inflated qualifications or experience on the resume, the applicant will receive no consideration for the position, as per OPM regulations.