ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER

This position is being filled under the memorandum from the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (USD(P&R)) "Expansion of Direct Hire Authority for Certain Personnel of the Department of Defense," dated August 12,2024. This position is part of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

Duties

• As a ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER at the GS-0819-13 some of your typical work assignments may include: Serves as the authoritative Subject Matter Expert (SME) on environmental compliance and NEPA processes, directing the strategic development, technical execution, and review of complex Environmental Assessments (EAs) and Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) to support agency-level construction, weapons systems field-testing, and critical Department of War (DoW)/DTRA test operations. Acts as the primary technical liaison and regulatory point of contact for high-priority environmental actions across critical national test assets-including Kirtland AFB, Dugway Proving Ground, White Sands Missile Range, and the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS)-and serves as the principal lead for external regulatory audits, responses, and finding closures with state and federal authorities. Conceives, plans, and implements innovative engineering solutions to mitigate unique and critical environmental risks associated with weapons of mass destruction (WMD) testing, while exercising technical authority to immediately halt and correct hazardous, non-compliant operational conditions to protect the workforce, public, and environment. Formulates and manages comprehensive compliance programs for the lifecycle handling, storage, and disposal of hazardous, radioactive, and industrial wastes, collaborating directly with senior officials from the DoW, DTRA, Department of Energy (DOE), EPA, and OSHA to ensure multi-agency regulatory alignment. Directs the complete lifecycle of environmental permitting and remediation activities, providing definitive technical oversight for initial site assessments, clean-up strategies, and final site closures, while ensuring the strict integrity of complex permit applications and compliance with existing operational permits. Designs, implements, and delivers advanced environmental training and compliance programs to educate military, government, and contractor personnel, fostering a proactive culture of regulatory compliance and operational safety across all assigned test environments.

Qualifications

You may qualify at the GS-13 grade level, if you fulfill the following qualifications: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service as listed below: Develop and review National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documentation, including Environmental Assessments (EAs), Environmental Impact Statements (EISs), and Categorical Exclusions; Establish and manage programs for hazardous materials and hazardous waste in accordance with federal, state, and Department of War (DoW)/Department of Energy (DOE) regulations; Provide technical direction for environmental site assessments, cleanup strategies, restoration activities, and site closures, including developing cost estimates for environmental projects; Conduct technical environmental appraisals and field compliance inspections; Provide environmental consultation and compliance briefings to senior leadership, multi-agency stakeholders (e.g., DOE, DoW, EPA), and contractor personnel. (Experience must be clearly demonstrated in your resume) 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, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. In addition to meeting qualifications, your application package must reflect the applicable experience to meet the Individual Occupational Requirements for the 0819, series as listed below: A. For Engineering series 0819 - Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics. B. For Engineering series 0819 - Combination of education and experience - college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following: Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1, or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions. Written Test - Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Specified academic courses - Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A. Related curriculum - Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all-inclusive.)

Announcement details

• Agency: Defense Threat Reduction Agency (Department of Defense)
• Announcement number: DTRA-27-13088413-DH
• Series: 0819 Environmental Engineering
• Pay plan and grade: GS 13
• Pay: $107,592 – $139,871 Per Year
• Open to: Military spouses; National Guard and reserves; Open to the public
• Open period: October 13, 2026 to October 26, 2026 (US Eastern)

Apply on the official USAJOBS announcement. Application instructions on USAJOBS take precedence over this summary.