Research Technician Soil and Water Management

Duties

The successful candidate will participate in a research team studying soil and water management in agricultural landscapes and its impact on the environment. He/she will interact with researchers, technicians and students from various AAFC research and development centres, and Universities and extension personnel from provincial governments and industry. The successful candidate will plan, coordinate, conduct field and laboratory work to collect data for research projects; in the context of agricultural landscape, assess soil erosion rates and various soil water conservation measures in agricultural fields and their impacts on crop growth and soil health; investigate the transport and delivery of sediments, nutrients, agricultural chemicals and pathogens from fields to the receiving waters. The successful candidate will be responsible for 1) running a soil and hydrology laboratory by streamlining routine analyses of water and soil samples, ordering supplies and equipment, calibrating and maintaining equipment and software, developing, applying and updating analysis methods; 2) installing and maintaining field monitoring systems such as surface water gauging and sampling stations, weather stations and soil monitoring stations; 3) organizing research projects, leading field experiments or field data and sample collection campaigns; 4) compiling, organizing and maintaining lab analysis, field monitoring and project related databases, conducting basic statistical analysis, GIS analysis and mapping of the data and assisting in preparation of scientific reports and presentations; 5) supervising and assigning work to students and junior technicians and 6) other related research activities.

Work environment

This position will report to the Soil and Water Research Scientist at the Fredericton Research and Development Centre. The incumbent will provide technical support for field and laboratory research to be conducted at Fredericton research farm and in grower fields located across New Brunswick, particularly in the potato belt regions, occasionally in PEI, or NS and other provinces in Canada. Travel to field sites will be required. The position will involve the supervision of a junior research technician, summer students and short-term technical support staff.

As one of Canada’s Best Diversity Employers, AAFC is proud to celebrate our achievement in creating a diverse, respectful, and positive workplace where all employees are valued and recognized for their unique qualities, ideas, voices and perspectives.

Intent of the process

The immediate need is for one indeterminate position.

A pool of qualified candidates may be established and may be used for similar permanent and temporary employment for the location indicated for this process.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

Contact information for 2 references.

You must meet all essential qualifications in order to be appointed to the position. Other qualifications may be a deciding factor in choosing the person to be appointed. Some essential and other qualifications will be assessed through your application. It is your responsibility to provide appropriate examples that illustrate how you meet each qualification. Failing to do so could result in your application being rejected.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

Diploma from a recognized post-secondary institution in soil, agriculture or environment sciences, or a related field OR an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience.

Degree equivalency

Experience planning and conducting soil and water related research under field and laboratory settings.
Experience in lab analyses of soil and water samples.
Experience in field experiments, monitoring and campaigns for soil and water sample collections.
Experience in statistical analysis, summarizing results and contributing to the preparation of research reports or presentations.

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

English essential

Information on language requirements

Knowledge of soil and water research related laboratory equipment and field monitoring devices.
Knowledge of experimental design.
Knowledge of soil water conservation and related soil health issues.
Knowledge of non-point source pollutions and related soil, water and air quality issues.

Adaptability
Initiative
Teamwork
Planning and Organizing

Ability to establish and conduct field trials.
Ability to compile and analyze data and summarize results.

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

Master’s or doctoral degree in soil, agriculture or environment sciences from a recognized post-secondary institution.

Degree equivalency

Experience in operating, calibrating, monitoring, and trouble-shooting laboratory equipment.
Experience in operating, calibrating, monitoring, and trouble-shooting field monitoring devices.
Experience in supervision.

Knowledge of agricultural production systems in Canada.
Knowledge of hydrological cycle in agricultural landscapes.
Knowledge of programming languages for modeling and data analyses.
Knowledge of GIS, terrain analysis, remote sensing, and mapping.

Selection may be limited to members of the following Employment Equity groups: Aboriginal persons, persons with disabilities, visible minorities, women

Information on employment equity

Placement of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) employees affected by workforce adjustment.

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance

Valid driver's license.
Ability and willingness to work overtime.
Ability and willingness to travel and work in remote areas.
Ability and willingness to work with soils, manures, pesticides and other agrochemicals in the laboratory and field settings in variable weather condition and terrains.
Ability and willingness to work in shallow water for sediment and water sampling or monitoring data collections.
Ability and willingness to work on or around farm machinery.

Other information

Applications submitted by email will not be accepted. You must apply on-line through www.jobs.gc.ca.

Persons with disabilities preventing them from applying on-line are asked to contact 1-800-645-5605.

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice. Applicants are asked to indicate their preferred official language in their application.

Communication for this process will be sent via email. It is the responsibility of the candidate to ensure accurate contact information is provided and updated as required. Candidates who apply to this selection process should include an email address that accepts email from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email).

All communication relating to this process, including email correspondence, may be used in the assessment of qualifications.

Appointment decisions may be based on one or more of the following criteria:
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the strengths and weaknesses of the work team.
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the specific duties of the position being staffed.
- Depth, breadth, type of work-specific experience.
- Level/degree of one or more competencies/qualifications.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled, diverse workforce reflective of Canadian society. As a result, it promotes employment equity and encourages candidates to indicate voluntarily on their application if they are a woman, an Aboriginal person, a person with a disability or a member of a visible minority group.

The Public Service of Canada is also committed to developing inclusive, barrier-free selection processes and work environments. If contacted in relation to a job opportunity or testing, you should advise the Public Service Commission or the departmental official in a timely fashion of the accommodation measures which must be taken to enable you to be assessed in a fair and equitable manner. Information received relating to accommodation measures will be addressed confidentially.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans and to Canadian citizens, in that order.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.