Field Biologist (On-Call

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Kleinfelder is seeking field biologists to support with public and private sector projects, near Ukiah, California. The individual(s) will assist on an as-needed basis for field survey, monitoring, and technical reports. Specifically, seeking individuals located in and around Mendocino County, California. The individual(s) will largely work in remote areas in the field but will report to the nearest office as needed.

The individual(s) will primarily be responsible for assisting Kleinfelder biologists with PG&E’s Potter Valley Project Cape Horn Dam Fish Ladder and Anadromous Fish Passage Monitoring Program and operations at Van Arsdale Fisheries Station (VAFS) on the Eel River. Duties will include adult chinook salmon, steelhead, and lamprey monitoring, plus downstream migrant trapping at VAFS, but will also include additional fisheries and aquatic work support of FERC license compliance for the Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project.

The responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to:

• Performing seasonal surveys for protected species, compliance monitoring for work crews, and written logs and reports of compliance activities.
• Perform routine operation and maintenance of fish passage facilities as required in response to storm events and fish migration including, but are not limited to, pre- and post-storm preparations, debris removal, and predator/nuisance abatement. Assist with daily tasks at the fish ladder to maximize fish passage efficiency, and evaluation of facility infrastructure to optimize fish migration.
• Assist with maintaining a video monitoring system at the passage facility. Daily inspections of the video cameras and associated equipment will occur throughout the salmonid and lamprey migration seasons. Recorded video imagery of fish ascending the ladder will be routinely downloaded and reviewed for species assemblage, sex identification, and length measurements.
• Assist with trapping of adult anadromous fish usually performed during daylight hours as needed based on NMFS and CDFW guidance. Traps will be serviced daily when in use, and all debris and other hazards to fish will be removed. When processing individual fish, data collection will include species and sex identification, length measurements, and condition. Procedures may also include PIT tagging and tissue sampling for genetic information.
• During the downstream migrant season, assist with operations and maintain fish passage infrastructure to mitigate possible migration barriers. Duties may include but are not limited to, pre- and post-storm maintenance, flow configuration adjustments, and debris/algae removal. Fyke traps will be implemented to capture downstream migrants for processing and will be serviced daily. Data collection of captured individuals will include species identification, length measurements, and may include marking fish (PIT/dye) as well as additional information for adult steelhead including genetic sampling (tissue), life-history stage, and sex identification.

Requirements and Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree in fisheries, biology or a related field, may consider training desirable candidates with lesser degree
• 0-3 years of relevant experience - 1+ years is highly preferred
• Strong interest in or prior experience in natural resource consulting or restoration is desirable.
• Comfortable working in physically challenging outdoor environments in all types of weather
• Willing to work flexible daytime hours
• Traveling on a regular/daily basis to project location
• Effe…