Watercraft Inspector - Natural Resources Technician - Career Seasonal

Working Title- Watercraft Inspector

Classification- Natural Resources Technician 3

Job Status- Full-Time/Career Seasonal

Season Length- 10 months – February 1 – November 30 annually

WDFW Program- Fish Program – Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Division

Duty Station- Spokane Valley, Washington – Spokane County

Learn more about being a member of Team WDFW!

Photo Caption – Watercraft check station – Photo Credit: WDFW

Are you passionate about protecting Washington’s environments from invasive species?

Embrace this role to protect state waters by inspecting and decontaminating trailered watercraft for aquatic invasive species.

This is an opportunity to serve Washington's citizens by protecting, restoring and enhancing fish and wildlife and their habitats, while providing sustainable and wildlife-related recreational and commercial opportunities.

Among the varied range of responsibilities held within this role, this position will:

Inspect recreational and commercial watercraft at Mandatory Inspection Stations.

• Inspect watercraft at inspection stations for Aquatic Invasive Species, conduct standardized interviews to obtain watercraft information, preserve possible AIS from watercraft for shipment, decontaminate watercraft if infested with AIS.
• Utilize hot-water Decontamination Units.
• Interact with the public and opportunistically educate the public on AIS.
• Maintain operation of electronic reader boards.
• Monitor condition of signage alerting watercraft of inspection stations.
• Record collected watercraft inspection and decontamination data into the “Colorado” WID Database system.

Supervision of frontline and field-oriented operations employees.

• Train and teach new staff on proper inspection protocols, decontamination procedures, and data entry processes.
• Ensure staff are following WIT 1 and WIT 2 inspection and decontamination standards, including safety and regulatory compliance.
• Provide feedback to improve staff skills and adherence to protocol.
• Perform weekly check-ins with staff, ensuring proper opportunities for coaching and mentoring of lower-level staff.

Office Support/Other Duties as Assigned.

• Entry of collected information using electronic tablets.
• Assisting with presentations about the WDFW AIS Program.
• Assist in the implementation and expansion of the AIS unit.

Equipment/station/facility maintenance.

• Ensures vehicles and equipment are in safe and working order through weekly review.
• Work with supervisor to provide staff with resources to maintain station facility.

Working Conditions:

Work setting: Work is performed primarily outdoors at watercraft inspection and decontamination stations, often in varying and sometimes extreme weather conditions. This position may involve working in or near water, including tasks that require navigating, negotiating, and performing duties related to water environments, hot decontamination equipment, cleaning agents, and occasional contact with aquatic organisms. The position requires standing for extended periods, performing repetitive tasks, safely operating vehicles and decontamination equipment.

Occasional lifting of materials and maintenance activities such as cleaning, landscaping, and facility upkeep are also required.

Schedule: This position is full-time, working 40 hours per week. The standard work schedule includes the potential for occasional evening or weekend work as needed. Schedules may vary based on business needs, time of year, and/or weather conditions. The incumbent may be required to respond on short notice to AIS watercraft during non-scheduled hours.

Travel requirements: This position requires frequent travel to and from various watercraft inspection and decontamination stations throughout the region. Travel is typically within an assigned area but may occasionally extend to other parts of the state for training, meetings, or to support program operations. Employees must be able to operate state vehicles and may occasionally work extended hours, weekends, or holidays depending on seasonal workload and inspection station needs.

Customer Interactions: Interacts with the public at mandatory check stations for trailered watercraft and decontaminations of…