at Natural Resources Conservation Service in Morrison, Illinois, United States
Job Description
Summary The incumbent serves as the Resource Soil Scientist on the Assistant State Conservationist-Field Operations staff. The NRCS mission is to provide resources to farmers and landowners to aid them with conservation. The primary purpose of the position is to provide leadership of soil health management systems throughout the Area; develop and provide training to NRCS and other technical staff and partners and assist with wetland compliance work. Responsibilities Provide soil expertise (e.g., assignment of soil erodibility factors, soil health assessments, and identification of hydric soils) to technical and non-technical audiences. Conduct on-site soil and soil health investigations to resolve complex problems and provide advice, guidance, and leadership to others in delivering products and services that meet requestor’s needs. Serve as a technical soil specialist for highly erodible land, wetland conservation, conservation compliance, and soil health management systems. Develop and provide training in soil health, interpreting lab results, soil science, and the use of soil survey information to NRCS and non-NRCS audiences. Provide leadership and guidance in soil survey data (dynamic soil properties) in National Soil Information System (NASIS), monitors and updates soil survey data to meet current needs, and provides leadership in accessing soil survey data. Integrate soils, soil health, soil health assessments, and soil survey information with overall program activities. Provide guidance to field offices and/or assist in the preparation of area-wide plans of operation, business plans, budget plans, long range plans, and training plans related to soil survey technical soil services and soil health management systems. Review field office use of soils information and soil health assessments in the application of conservation practices and programs. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Time in grade: Current Federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. (e.g. one year at the GS-11 grade level for consideration for the GS-12 grade level). Basic Education Requirement: Degree: Soil science or a closely related discipline that included 30 semester hours or equivalent in biological, physical, or earth science, with a minimum of 15 semester hours in such subjects as soil genesis, pedology, soil chemistry, soil physics, and soil fertility.; OR Combination of Education and Experience: Courses equivalent to a major in soil science or a related discipline that included at least 30 semester hours in the biological, physical, or earth sciences. At least 15 of these semester hours must have been in the areas specified in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: Specialized Experience for the GS-12 level: To qualify for the GS-12 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. This experience must include: Providing technical guidance and assistance on complex topics pertaining to: soil genesis, geomorphology, classification, correlations, interpretations, soil-landscape relations, soil climate, and soil health management systems to address complex issues in soil health management systems; Leading on-site soil and soil health investigations/assessments and/or mapping to collect and analyze data on soil characteristics (physical, chemical, and biological), geology, and geomorphology to assist farm bill customers address soil and soil health resource concerns; Developing and delivering soil and soil health management training to technical and non-technical audiences in collecting soil samples, interpreting soil data, and interpreting/explaining soil lab analyses on soil properties (chemical, physical, and biological) to address soil and soil health resource concerns; Expertise in the use of soil technology transfer tools (e.g., NASIS, Web Soil Survey, Soil Data Access, R Studio, Survey123, or similar systems). Note: There is no education substitution for the GS-12 level. For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: Soil Science Series 0470 (opm.gov) Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Education If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements: You must submit a copy of your college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Applicants must, therefore, only report attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation via this link. All education claimed by applicants will be verified accordingly. Important: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. Click on this link for more information. Additional Information Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Reemployment Priority List (RPL): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP or RPL eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100. Physical Demands: The work occurs in both outside and office environments. Outside activities involve strenuous walking over rough terrain, frequent bending/stooping, and lifting and carrying of moderat
