Regulatory Permitting Specialist

ESA is seeking a skilled biologist or with at least 5 years' experience to join our Biological Resources and Land Management practice in Northern California. We welcome collaborative team members with a growth mindset able to interpret and apply federal and state wildlife, wetlands, and waters protection regulations, conduct project impact analyses, deliver quality technical written work products, participate in multi-disciplinary project teams, and contribute to successful implementation of a wide range of project types. This is an exempt, full-time, remote opportunity.  All remote candidates must commit to working ESA Pacific Standard Time (PST) normal business hours.  Preference given to candidates able to work hybrid from one of our Northern CA ESA offices.  While this role is remote first, all qualified candidates must be open to occasionally meet for in-person team meetings, team collaboration, and project site meetings quarterly.

Who You Are

• You are a scientist, problem-solver, collaborator, and task manager. You hold a bachelor’s and/or master’s degree with major course work in environmental science, ecology, natural resources, biology, environmental planning, or a related interdisciplinary field and have a minimum of 5 years of experience leading biological resource surveys, preparing biological resource impact evaluations, preparing permit application documents, and managing projects and tasks in the San Francisco Bay and/or Central Valley regions of California.
• You have experience with a range of project types, not limited to water and wastewater, energy, transportation, land management planning, and habitat restoration projects. Technical expertise in energy projects is considered a plus.
• You have a working knowledge of federal and state Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act Section 404 Dredge and Fill programs, Clean Water Section 401 Water Quality Certifications, California Fish and Game Code (e.g., 1600 Lake and Streambed Alteration), and associated relevant environmental regulations and processes in California. You are experienced with developing the contents of applications for permits and approvals under these regulations.
• You have experience conducting biological resource surveys, knowledge of vegetation type classifications, energy-related site assessments, sensitive species and habitat delineations, construction compliance monitoring, preparation of biological resource impact analyses, and CEQA/NEPA biological resource sections.
• You are known for preparing clear, concise, well-written and supported documents, for your high-level of organization and responsiveness, and for your ability to communicate effectively with a diverse group of colleagues and clients and regulatory agencies, both verbally and non-verbally.
• You are an effective team member and communicator who proactively contributes constructively to team goals and resolving hurdles.
• You are responsible for and accountable for contributions to contracted deliverables, schedules, and budgets. You work well independently and under the direction of senior technical specialists and are experienced in successfully completing tasks with competing deadlines.  
• You are driven by contributing to projects that benefit ecosystems and communities and demonstrate a commitment to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• Additional expertise including protocol-level wetland/aquatic resource delineations, developing compensatory mitigation plans, direct client and regulatory agency (e.g., U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service, Regional Water Quality Control Board, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, California Coastal Commission, and Bay Conservation and Development Commission) staff engagement, is a plus but not required.

Remote candidates must be located in one of the following States: Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, New York, Oregon, Washington, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington D.C., Wisconsin

What You Will Do for ESA

• As a Regulatory Permitting Specialist, you will support an interdisciplinary team of biologists, wetland scientists, engineers, planners, GIS professionals, cultural resources specialists, and other technical specialists, to facilitate and obtain regulatory agency approvals for projects throughout Northern California.
• You will support projects that range in complexity from small-scale maintenance actions (i.e., bank and levee repairs, sediment removal, culvert replacements) to complex, multi-beneficial, nature-based habitat restoration, enhancement, and climate change adaptation projects (tidal, coastal, and riverine environments), capital improvement projects (utility, transportation, energy, and flood protection infrastructure improvements), and regional conservation programs (habitat preserves, mitigation banks).
• You will be involved in all phases of a project life cycle, working with project managers, project design engineers, and clients to identify environmental constraints, develop and implement permit strategies, coordinate with the regulatory agency staff, coordinate with biological and cultural resource specialists, prepare permit applications, respond to requests for additional information, and interpret construction compliance measures.
• You will thrive in a fast-paced, challenging, and highly rewarding environment by managing multiple responsibilities and deadlines, while working on a team or independently. Under the guidance of Principal and Senior Permitting Specialists, you will be responsible for coordinating across disciplines to compile permit application packages for a variety of regulatory agencies. You will use your strong writing skills and technical knowledge to prepare documents that are clear, concise, and well supported.
• You will support business development goals, such as contributing to scopes of work, budgets, and schedules for proposals and direct marketing and business development activities.
• You will provide mentorship and support for early-career staff, including reviewing their work for accuracy and clarity and providing constructive feedback and career development guidance while working on projects together.
• In all of your work, you will: demonstrate and perpetuate values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in your interactions with other ESA employee-owners, clients, teaming partners, and vendors/contractors; treat others with respect, empathy, and dignity; continuously seek opportunities to increase personal awareness and deepen understanding and growth related to systemic inequities and the impact of biases and micro-aggressions in the work place; and commit to speaking up and/or addressing inappropriate or exclusionary behaviors. 

What’s Special About Our Team

Our Biology Team includes biologists, restoration ecologists, permitting specialists, conservation biologists, construction compliance specialists, and environmental scientists that provide expertise for many municipalities throughout California.

Our Regulatory Permitting Specialists provide expertise for many clients throughout California, with particular focus on permitting habitat restoration and enhancement projects. Our work matters because it helps communities shape a positive future for their citizens in balance with conserving our state’s sensitive natural resources.

We value creative thinking, teamwork, and multi-disciplinary and cross-disciplinary engagement and integration. To read about some of the exciting projects we have recently completed, check out this link: https://esassoc.com/projects/.

What’s Special About ESA

Joining ESA means becoming part of a close-knit team of environmental professionals who contribute to outstanding projects, improve environmental stewardship, and advance a more sustainable and resilient future for our communities and wild places.

At ESA, we provide benefits such as medical, dental, and vision insurance (paid at 70% for you AND your family), annual allocations of company share through our ESOP, a 401(k) plan with company match, and paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays, to name a few.

We also provide specific programs whether you want to further your technical expertise, sharpen your business acumen, or help lead the next generation of employee-owners. We want to support you in reaching your career goals through tuition reimbursement, professional development bonuses, and attendance at conferences.

Who We Are 

We are a 100% employee-owned environmental consulting firm who values diversity and inclusion and celebrate the differences that make each of us unique. Our culture is built on mutual respect, recognizing that our variety of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives leads to better solutions, which fosters our continued success for our employee-owners and clients. 

In accordance with ESA’s duty and responsibility to provide and maintain a safe workplace that is free of known hazards and to minimize the exposure to potential hazards, any employee who works from an ESA office or conducts any other in-person ESA work-related activity is required to submit their proof of vaccination status or have received an approved exemption and accommodation in states which this applies. 

ESA is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to a diverse and inclusive work environment. (EOE M/V/F/D)