Drills and Exercises Unit Supervisor; Environmental Planner

Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen

The Department of Ecology is hiring a Drills and Exercises Unit Supervisor (Environmental Planner
5) within the Spill Prevention, Preparedness, and Response Program.

Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen, the Department of Ecology invites applications for the Drills and Exercises Unit Supervisor position. This role is vital to ensuring Washington’s oil spill drill and exercise program meets federal, state, and local standards and keeps the community prepared for spills.

• Headquarters Office in Lacey, WA.
• Northwest Region Office in Shoreline, WA.
• Upon hire, you must live within a commutable distance from the selected duty station.

Note:

If the selected duty station is the Northwest Region Office in Shoreline, the salary will include an additional 5% premium pay due to its location in King County. Salary range: $7,082 - $9,756 monthly.

• This position is eligible for telework and flexible schedule options.
• A minimum of one day every other week is required in the office.
• Schedules are dependent upon position needs and are subject to change.

• Apply by February 22, 2026.
• This position will remain open until filled. The agency reserves the right to make a hire at any time after application review begins. Applications received after the date above may not be considered.

In this role, you will manage the state’s oil spill drill and exercise program, ensuring that federal, state, local, tribal, and industry response partners are trained, equipped, and ready to respond effectively to oil and hazardous substance spills whenever they occur. You will serve as a subject matter expert in drill design, contingency planning, and response readiness; lead a team of drill coordinators who work closely with the response community to develop a world‑class drill program for Washington state.

This role requires complex judgment and critical thinking to align drills with the federal Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90), the National Preparedness for Response Exercise Program (NPREP), and Washington state regulatory standards, ensuring strategic, realistic, and effective spill response training.

• Manage all aspects of an innovative and progressive drill and exercise program.
• Develop regulatory standards pertaining to drills.
• Set performance measures and track and report progress.
• Develop and publish training and educational materials pertaining to drills and exercises.
• Supervise staff, assign work, and manage unit workloads.
• Develop content for Regional and Area contingency plans.
• Support responses through participation on the Program’s Incident Management Team.

You are identified as a Critical Agency Employee who is expected to work during facility closures and natural disasters; participate in the Spills Program Incident Management Team in positions designated on the Program roster; and may be required to serve as a PREP Pager Duty Officer during normal business hours and during after‑hours on rotation. You must be prepared for a minimum 3‑day field deployment within 1 hour of notification.

All required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is provided. Stand‑by pay and response pay will be received when applicable.

For detailed information on how we calculate experience and responses to other frequently asked questions, please visit our Recruitment website.

Eleven (11) years of experience and/or education as described below:

Experience in: Land use, urban, regional, environmental, or natural resource planning, and/or program development, landscape architecture, geography, land use or environmental law, public administration with an environmental emphasis, or closely related experience which may include any of the following:

• Supervising staff and managing unit workloads, including assigning work, setting performance expectations, providing timely feedback, and ensuring adequate staffing to meet program needs.
• Managing projects including multiple concurrent projects, tracking issues to resolution, meeting deadlines, and adapting to priorities in a dynamic environment.
• Oil spill preparedness and response,…