Shorelands & Environmental Assistance; SEA Program Manager; EMS Band 4

Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen. The Department of Ecology is hiring a Shorelands & Environmental Assistance (SEA) Program Manager (EMS Band
4) as a member of the Executive Leadership Team.

Headquarters Office in Lacey, WA. Employees are required to live within a commutable distance from the duty station upon hiring.

• The position is eligible for telework and flexible schedule options.
• A minimum of three days per week is required in the office.
• Schedules are dependent on position needs and may change.

• Apply by August 09, 2026.

We are looking for a transformational leader to partner with dedicated professionals to guide Washington’s statewide efforts to protect and restore shorelands, wetlands, coastal areas, and floodplains; strengthen community resilience; advance clean energy siting; and support conservation and hazard‑mitigation initiatives across diverse landscapes.

• Plan, lead, organize, and direct the statewide SEA program by negotiating program scope, priorities, resources, and outcomes.
• Oversee the development and implementation of policies, rules, and guidance that shape statewide shorelands, wetlands, floodplain management, clean energy coordination, and coastal resilience across all 39 counties.
• Lead the program’s strategic direction to align shoreland protection, watershed‐based planning, coastal management, hazard mitigation, clean energy siting, and community conservation initiatives with Ecology’s mission and statewide environmental priorities.
• Administer state and delegated federal programs, including the Shoreline Management Act, State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), Coastal Zone Management Act, Clean Water Act Section 401 Water Quality Certification Program, and wetland and floodplain management authorities.
• Manage the program’s operating and capital budgets, personnel, and resources to ensure responsible, transparent, and effective stewardship of public funds.
• Hire, lead, and develop managers, supervisors, and senior policy staff while fostering a collaborative, inclusive, and high‑performing workplace that supports diversity, staff engagement, and professional growth.
• Ensure high‑quality, defensible regulatory and scientific outcomes across planning, permitting, wetlands and flood hazard review, clean energy coordination, coastal hazard mitigation, and community‑based conservation.
• Oversee major statewide initiatives such as Floodplain by Design, Wetland Mitigation Banking, Shoreline Management Act, critical area ordinances under the Growth Management Act, and the stewardship, research, education, and community science missions of the Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, the Northwest Straits Commission, and the Washington Conservation Corps.
• Serve as Washington’s designated Coastal Manager, representing the state before federal agencies and negotiating on matters related to the Coastal Zone Management Act.
• Coordinate Ecology’s disaster response activities related to severe storms, catastrophic floods, wildfires, and other natural hazards through deployment of Washington Conservation Corps resources.
• Build and maintain strong partnerships with Tribal governments, federal, state, and local government partners, conservation organizations, environmental justice advocates, regulated entities, and community‑based organizations.
• Integrate SEA’s work across Ecology programs—especially Water Quality, Water Resources, Toxics Cleanup, Climate Pollution Reduction, and Environmental Assessment—to promote watershed‑based, cross‑program alignment and effective statewide outcomes.

• Demonstrated expertise in environmental, physical or natural science, environmental studies, engineering, public administration, planning, public policy, political science, law, or a related discipline, demonstrated through professional degrees and/or lived experience.
• Professional level management experience, including:
  • Strategic Leadership, Budget and Planning
  • Ethical and Inclusive Leadership
  • Communication and Relationship Building
  • Program and Policy Management
  • Intergovernmental and Partner Coordination
  • Resource and Workforce…