Senior Biologist

Job Overview

Stantec is seeking a Senior Biologist with at least 10 years of experience to join our Southern California Ecosystems Group, operating out of one of our southern California offices such as Los Angeles, Fresno, Irvine, Monrovia, Paramount, Pasadena, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, or Ventura. The role involves field and office work, including construction field work, ecosystem restoration projects, and multidisciplinary project teams for siting and licensing of energy production, transportation, community development, and other public and private sector projects.

• Manage projects, supervise staff, lead and mentor project field teams, and provide support to other project managers undertaking renewable energy, oil and gas, and other development projects.
• Schedule, assist, and/or lead teams for field tasks, such as special‑status species surveys/inventories, nesting bird surveys, vegetation community assessments and mapping, jurisdictional waters delineations and assessments, and compliance monitoring.
• Provide guidance and training to junior staff.
• Plan, prepare, and review technical reports or portions of larger environmental assessments.
• Work with business development teams and lead efforts to respond to Requests for Proposals (RFPs), including scope definition, cost estimation, and proposal compilation.
• Contribute to corporate profile through participation in professional associations and committees.
• Coordinate with clients and regulators to communicate results of surveys and technical reports.
• Lead development of permitting strategies, permit application packages, and agency negotiations.
• Assist teams and pursue new business opportunities and technical proposals.
• Achieve 75‑80% direct project utilization goal.
• Conduct occasional overnight travel within and outside Southern California.

• Demonstrable experience in all aspects of project management, biological impact assessment and mitigation strategy development, and preparation and review of biological resources documents.
• Demonstrable experience providing strong support and collaboration in delivering high‑quality work products to multidisciplinary project teams within scope, budget, and schedule expectations.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and organizational skills.
• Business development acumen with established relationships with clients and regulatory agency staff.
• Significant experience reviewing and analyzing scientific data, maps, and drawings with strong analytical, problem‑solving, and decision‑making capabilities.
• Strong background with southern California flora, fauna, and vegetative communities; experience in floristic botanical surveys, reconnaissance wildlife surveys, and species‑specific protocol surveys. Experience elsewhere will be considered a plus.
• Experience with permits for arroyo toad, coastal California gnatcatcher, least Bell’s vireo, southwestern willow flycatcher, Mohave ground squirrel, and/or desert tortoise is a plus.
• Possession of a California Scientific Collecting Permit, State Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), or federal Recovery Permit for special‑status species is a plus.
• Experience as a USFWS‑approved biologist for federally listed species and/or a CDFW‑approved Designated Biologist (DB) is a plus, particularly for desert tortoise and Mohave ground squirrel.
• Experience preparing technical documentation including biological survey reports, technical memoranda, Biological Resources Technical Reports (BRTRs), jurisdictional waters delineations and Aquatic Resources Delineation Reports (ARDRs), and/or biological resources sections for CEQA/NEPA documents.
• Strong knowledge of federal, state, and local environmental regulations and processes, particularly in Southern California, including CEQA/NEPA, FESA/CESA, MBTA/BGEPA, CWA, Porter‑Cologne Water Quality Control Act, California Fish and Game Code, California Coastal Act, and local coastal programs.
• Experience preparing regulatory permit applications such as Clean Water Act Section 404/401, Waste Discharge Requirements (WDRs), Fish and Game Code Section 1600 Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreements, and/or federal/state…