Environmental Protection Assistant Division Director

Looking for a leadership position in the environmental field?

If so, we invite you to check out this opportunity with the State of Connecticut!

At the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, we are dedicated to conserving, improving and protecting our natural resources and the environment- and increasing the availability of cheaper, cleaner and more reliable energy.

Within the Bureau of Water Protection & Land Reuse (WPLR), our mission is to work together for the restoration, protection and conservation of Connecticut’s water and land resources for current and future generations.

With this goal in mind, WPLR is currently looking for an Assistant Division Director, Remediation Division at our downtown Hartford Office, located at 79 Elm Street, across from historical Bushnell Park.

WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU

State of Connecticut employees participate in a competitive benefits plan that includes: 

• NEW: A Platinum Healthcare Plan, the nation’s best for state employees and dependents, according to a report by Georgetown’s Center on Health Insurance Reform and article by Ellen Andrews, Ph.D., along with comprehensive benefit offerings.
• Sick, vacation, and personal leave.
• Student Loan Forgiveness - the State of Connecticut is an eligible Public Service Loan Forgiveness employer, meaning you may be eligible to have qualifying student loans forgiven after 10 years of service. Click here for more information.
  
• We encourage a healthy work/life balance to all employees.

Discover the opportunity to: 

• To work for a Forbes top company: ‘Forbes’ State of Connecticut Ranked One of the Best Employers of 2023 - State of CT Receives National Recognition for Offering Job Growth, Competitive Benefits, and Flexible Schedule.
• Engage in a rewarding career.
• Assist our employees so they can achieve success.
• Make a difference in the public sector.
• Work together in a collaborative team environment.  

POSITION DETAILS
This is a full-time, 40 hours per week position on first shift, Monday-Friday. Opportunities for a hybrid schedule will be available.

The position affords a dedicated and experienced environmental manager committed to public service and environmental protection an exciting opportunity. The successful candidate will thrive in a fast-paced workplace with a talented and committed group of professionals, making a real difference in the environmental quality of Connecticut including returning contaminated sites to productive reuse.

The Remediation Division oversees the investigation and remediation of environmental contamination. The Division sets standards and establishes procedures for documenting the clean-up of contaminated sites to meet Connecticut’s Remediation Standard Regulations. The ultimate goal is to protect, human health and the environment, through adequate reduction of risk from historical contamination. The Remediation Division is responsible for the regulatory oversight of hundreds of contaminated sites across Connecticut.

For the full range of duties, please see the "Examples of Duties" section below.

For an inside look at what it is like to Make an ImpaCT as a State of Connecticut employee, watch the video below!

Before you apply, make note of the following:

• In order to be considered for this job opening, you must meet the Minimum Qualifications as listed on the job opening. You must specify your qualifications on your application.
• The minimum experience and training requirements must be met by the close date on the job opening, unless otherwise specified.
• Ensure that your application is complete and detailed before submitting it. In order to comply with Public Act 21-69, the State of Connecticut is no longer asking for resumes during the initial application process. You will not be able to make revisions once your application is submitted into the JobAps system.
• All application materials must be received by the recruiting agency by the time specified on the job opening for the position for which you are applying. Late applications may not be submitted and will not be considered. Exceptions are rare and limited to documented events that incapacitate a candidate during the entire duration of the job posting time period. It is the candidate’s obligation and responsibility to request an exception and provide a legally recognized justification to accommodate such exception. Requests should be made to DAS.SHRM@ct.gov.

Important information for after you apply:

• This posting may require completion of additional referral questions (RQs). You can access these RQs via an email that will be sent to you after the posting's closing date or by visiting your JobAps Personal Status Board (Certification Questionnaires section). Your responses to these RQs must be submitted by the questionnaire's expiration date. Please regularly check your email and JobAps Personal Status Board for notifications. Please check your SPAM and/or Junk folders on a daily basis in the event an email provider places auto-notification emails in a user's spam.
• Although applicants will receive correspondence via email, as a backup they are also encouraged to sign on to their Personal Status Board on a daily basis to monitor their status, view all emailed notices and complete tasks required in the recruitment process.
• Note: At any point during the recruitment process, applicants may be required to submit additional documentation which support their qualification(s) for this position. These documents may include: a cover letter, resume, performance reviews, attendance records, supervisory references, licensure, etc., at the discretion of the hiring agency.
• The immediate vacancy is listed above, however, applications to this recruitment may be used for future vacancies in this job class.

Questions about this position should be directed to Jake Ferrari via email at jake.ferrari@ct.gov.

In the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection this class is accountable for assisting in the direction of the staff and programs of a scientific, regulatory or technical division.

Specific responsibilities will include but not be limited to, day to day management responsibility within the Remediation Division which includes:

• Assists in direction of staff and operations of the section;
• Determines priorities, coordinates plans and manages activities;
• Assists in formulating program policies, goals and objectives and ensures implementation of same by balancing competing priorities to efficiently use available resources;
• Prepares or directs the development of office implementation plans for achieving goals and objectives utilizing innovative approaches;
• Builds and provides the mentoring necessary to develop and expand staff capacity at all levels;
• Reviews and evaluates effectiveness of established or proposed policies and/or programs assessing options and developing recommendations for improvement;
• Interprets and administers pertinent laws and regulations;
• Evaluates staff performance;
• Provides or directs staff training and development;
• Assists in preparation of division budget;
• Prepares and/or oversees preparation of reports and correspondence;
• Oversees special projects;
• Represent Connecticut on the local, state, regional and national level;
• May serves as director in his/her absence;
• Coordinates with partners as appropriate, including technical consultation to local, regional, state and federal officials; and non-governmental organizations and constituent groups, and
• Builds and provides the mentoring necessary to develop and expand staff capacity at all levels, with a focus on managing change and succession planning.

• Considerable knowledge of
  • and ability to apply management principles and practices;
  • relevant state and federal laws, statutes and regulations;
  • environmental protection principles, techniques, practices and issues;
• Considerable
  • interpersonal skills;
  • oral and written communication skills;
  • analytical, organizational and negotiation skills;
• Considerable ability to apply relevant agency policies and procedures.

Nine (9) years of professional experience in natural resource management, environmental conservation, energy research, energy planning, energy policy development, public outdoor recreation, pollution prevention, reduction and management, environmental regulatory programs or other related environmental protection field.

One (1) year of the General Experience must have been in a supervisory capacity responsible for the supervision of professional and technical support staff performing environmental protection work.

• College training in a scientific or technical discipline related to the environmental field including but not limited to the biological, earth or physical sciences; environmental planning; environmental law; economics; leisure services; geographic information systems; geography with a concentration in geographic information systems; natural sciences or natural resources may be substituted for the General Experience on the basis of fifteen (15) semester hours equalling one-half (1/2) year of experience to a maximum of four (4) years for a Bachelor's degree.
• A Master's degree in a scientific or technical discipline related to the environmental field as listed above including but not limited to the biological, earth or physical sciences; environmental planning; environmental law; economics; leisure services; geographic information systems; geography with a concentration in geographic information systems; natural sciences or natural resources may be substituted for five (5) years of the General Experience.
• A law degree with a concentration in environmental protection or doctorate degree in a field related to environmental protection may be substituted for six (6) years of the General Experience.

NOTE: Education may only be substituted for a total of six (6) years of the General Experience.

• Experience applying the principles and practices in environmental investigation, remediation and site redevelopment;
• Experience supervising and leading teams
• Experience interpreting and administering state and federal laws, regulations, policies and procedures of environmental cleanup;
• Experience communicating technical information about environmental science and environmental laws to the regulated community, state and federal agencies, non-governmental organizations and the general public;
• Experience managing grants and program budgets;
• Experience negotiating settlements or enforcement actions with regulated parties to resolve environmental violations;
• Experience developing and implementing solutions to challenges to resolve stakeholder conflict;
• Experience defining expectations and coordinating team efforts for outcomes;
• Experience working with policies and laws for Environmental Justice.

AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.

As defined by Sec. 5-196 of the Connecticut General Statutes, a job class is a position or group of positions that share general characteristics and are categorized under a single title for administrative purposes. As such, a job class is not meant to be all-inclusive of every task and/or responsibility.