Title- Lower Columbia River Chum Biologist
Classification- Fish & Wildlife Biologist 2
Job Status- Full-Time / Permanent
WDFW Program- Fish Program – Fish Management Division
Duty Station- Ridgefield, Washington – Clark County
Hybrid/Telework- While this position may offer a telework option, the successful candidate must be available to report to the duty station as needed.

Learn more about being a member of Team WDFW!

Join the WDFW Team in Region 5 and be a key part of the Lower Columbia River Chum Biological Opinion Project! 

In this position, you’ll take ownership of several critical components of the project, from supervising field crews and monitoring salmonid populations to assisting with habitat restoration planning and permitting. 

In addition, this role involves hiring and supervising scientific technicians, providing the opportunity to mentor and support the next generation of fisheries professionals. 

If you’re ready to combine fieldwork, data analysis, and project leadership in one meaningful role, this position is a great fit.

What to Expect-
Among the varied range of responsibilities held within this role, the Lower Columbia River Chum Biologist will,

Lower Columbia River Chum Biological Opinion Project - Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E):

• Juvenile Salmonid Out-Migrant Monitoring:
  • Coordinate staff and logistics for juvenile salmonid monitoring, including leading independent field crews, participating in fieldwork, trap installation/removal, and occasionally conducting daily operations of rotary screw traps and fence-panel weirs with live boxes.  
• Adult Chum Salmon Monitoring: 
  • Coordinate staff and logistics for adult chum salmon monitoring, including leading independent field crews, conducting adult seining, operating adult traps, performing stream surveys, and supporting live adult and carcass tagging programs.  
• Ensure timely and accurate data entry into standardized WDFW databases, such as the Juvenile Migrant Exchange (JMX) and Trap, Weirs, and Surveys (TWS).
• Conduct quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) checks and preliminary analyses to generate abundance estimates and other data needed for status and annual reports.

Lower Columbia River Chum Biological Opinion Project:

• Habitat Restoration Projects: 
  • Assist the lead biologist scoping, permitting, and tracking implementation of habitat restoration projects.
• Annual Reporting Requirements: 
  • Assist with data summarization, table generation and editing/updating text sections for reports.
  • Contribute to annual reports, including contract deliverable reports (adult and juvenile monitoring activities and enhancement/re-introduction programs) and Endangered Species Act (ESA) permit applications and reports (juvenile monitoring activities).

Project Administration, Supervision, and Logistics:

• Manage staff time entry and approvals, vehicle data in the Vehicle Management Tracking System (VMTS), and state motor pool reporting.
• Order supplies, complete Order Payment Forms, and process P-card transaction reporting forms.
• Assist the project lead biologist with recruitments, participate in the hiring process, and perform annual evaluations of direct reports.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

Work Setting, including hazards:

• Work in an office setting 40% of the time and in the field 60% of the time. 
• Fieldwork includes work outdoors under cold, wet slippery conditions, working alone in remote locations, working early and late hours (some in darkness).  
• Regularly lift up to 70lbs, walk streams up to five (5) miles per day under cold, wet slippery conditions, and climbing up and down steep, slippery stream banks. 
• Sample carcasses of dead and rotting salmon with very strong odors. 
• This position may involve working in or near water, including tasks that require navigating, negotiating, and performing duties related to water environments. 
• Climb in and out of boats and snorkel in rivers with fast flowing/whitewater conditions under variable weather conditions for up to three (3) miles per day.

Schedule:

• Full-time, 40 hours per week. 
• Work hours may be assigned at any time within a 24-hour period and may vary based on operational needs, season, or weather conditions.
• The standard work schedule includes the potential for occasional evenings or weekends as needed. 

Travel Requirements:
This position will travel to and from field assignments.

Tools and Equipment:
18–20-foot jet sled boats, full-sized trucks, 50–200-foot beach seines, rotary screw and fence-panel weir with live box juvenile traps, pontoon rafts, fish tagging tools, hand tools (hammer, saw, screwdriver, etc.), power tools (skill saw, drill, rotary hammer drill, etc.), computers, dissolved oxygen (DO) meters, and flow meters.

Customer Interactions:
Primarily field-based contacts with landowners and resource users, including anglers.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Required Qualifications: 

• A Bachelor's degree in fisheries, wildlife management, natural resource science, or environmental science.

AND

• One (1) year of professional experience in fish/ wildlife/ habitat management or research.

AND

• One (1) year of experience supervising and coordinating staff. (Experience may be gained concurrently.)

Please Note: 

• A Master’s degree or higher in the applicable science may substitute the required experience. 
• Professional equivalent experience in fish/ wildlife/ habitat management or research may substitute, year for year, for education requirement.

Certifications/Licenses:
Valid driver’s license.

Special Requirements/Conditions of Employment:
Successful completion of agency training and/or certification is dependent on supervisory direction, position requirements, need and training availability:

• Basic CPR/First Aid certification, to be obtained as soon as possible after hire.

The following trainings are required and need to be completed prior to conducting activities:

• Wilderness First Aid certification.
• WDFW snorkel training and certification, renewal expected every two (2) years.
• WDFW Swiftwater training certification
• WDFW Oars training certification
• WDFW MOTC training certification.
• WDFW Coldwater (Inland) training certification.
• Additional trainings identified in the Washington State Learning Center and Power BI Safety Training Tracker.

Preferred Qualifications:
In addition to the required qualifications, our ideal applicant will possess some or all the following:

Experience in: 

• Viable Salmonid Population (VSP) parameters (abundance, productivity, distribution, diversity) and monitoring methodologies.
• Salmonid life histories and aquaculture practices.
• Adult and juvenile salmonid trapping and capture techniques.
• Adult population estimation methods and assumptions.
• Statistical techniques and basic problem-solving methods.
• Conducting stream surveys on foot, by pontoon raft, power boat, and snorkeling.
• Conducting adult and spawning ground surveys for Pacific salmon on foot and by pontoon raft.
• Installing, maintaining, operating, and removing resistance board weirs.
• Handling and tagging adult salmonids using Floy tags, carcass tags, opercle punches, Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags.
• Identifying juvenile and adult salmonids.
• Skilled in proper handling of live adult and juvenile fish (primarily salmonids).

Data and Analysis Skills:

• Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite, including intermediate to advanced skills in Access, Excel, and Word.
• Familiar with R software.
• Experience conducting QA/QC exercises on large, complex datasets.
• Experience with biological data collection and entry.

Include the following with your application materials:

• A completed online application showcasing how your qualifications align with the job requirements.
• An up-to-date resume.
• A cover letter detailing your interest in the position, your relevant skills and experience, and why you are the ideal candidate.
• At least three professional references with current contact information.

Supplemental Information

In addition to pay and other special employee programs, there are other benefits that WDFW employees may be eligible for. Click the “Benefits” tab at the top of this announcement to learn more.

Important Note: 

All new employees must complete an Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9 Form) on their first day of work. If hired for this or any position at WDFW, you will be required to provide documentation proving you are eligible to work in the United States. For a list of acceptable documents, please use the following link:  https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents

 Union- WAFWP:

This position is in the bargaining unit represented by the Washington Association of Fish & Wildlife Professionals and is subject to the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the State of Washington, Department of Fish & Wildlife, and the Washington Association of Fish & Wildlife Professionals.

Veteran and Military Spouse Preference Notice: 

Per RCW 73.16.010 Veterans and qualifying spouses who meet the minimum qualifications of a position are eligible for preference during the initial application review stage. To receive this benefit, please do the following: 

• Notify us of your veteran or military spouse status by email at Ashley.Lee@dfw.wa.gov.  
• Veterans only – Attach a copy of your DD214 (Member 4 copy), NGB 22 or USDVA signed verification of service letter.
  • Please redact any PII (personally identifiable information) data such as social security numbers.
• Subject line must include recruitment number, position, and spouse/veteran (example: 2024-1234 – Biologist 1 – Veteran)
• Include your name as it appears on your application in careers.wa.gov.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Employer

As part of WDFW’s efforts to advance respectful and inclusive work environments, the Agency expects inclusivity as part of our professional interactions and communications. Therefore, we want to ensure that all individuals feel welcome, are treated fairly and respectfully.  All staff are empowered to fully contribute to serving their work unit, Agency, and the citizens of Washington.

The Department of Fish and Wildlife is an equal opportunity employer.  We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity.  Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, disabled and Vietnam era veterans and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply.

Request an accommodation: Persons needing accommodation in the application process or this announcement in an alternative format please contact Jayme Chase by phone 360-902-2278 or email Jayme.Chase@dfw.wa.gov, or the Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) at 800-833-6388.

Technical Difficulties: If you are having technical difficulties creating, accessing, or completing your application, please call NEOGOV toll-free at (855) 524-5627 or support@neogov.com. 

Other questions: If you have other questions regarding this position, please reach out to Ashley.Lee@dfw.wa.gov and reference job #2025-06794.

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