Groundwater Contaminated Land Technical Assistant - 32047

This is an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic candidate to develop their technical expertise in groundwater resources, groundwater quality and/or contaminated land. In this role you will use evidence led, risk-based approach to protect and enhance the groundwater environment, deliver on our regulatory obligations and support incident response.

We are looking for an individual who enjoys problem solving as part of a team. As a technical assistant your duties will require you to contribute across a variety of work streams. You will:

·Contribute to the management of our groundwater level and quality monitoring networks
·Provide technical assistance to consultations for permits to abstract groundwater, to discharge to ground, or for waste & installations sites
·Assist in providing advice to local planning authorities on development proposals that may pose a risk to groundwater resources or quality and the risks posed to controlled waters from contaminated land
·Provide support with administrative tasks to plan compliance activity in a risk-based approach to support our permitting work
·Support the team to respond to information requests and enquiries
·Maintaining and updating filing systems ensuring accessible and accurate information
·Providing administrative support to team leaders and senior officers

The successful candidate will be expected to apply their existing knowledge and experience to the role but will have the opportunity to develop technical skills and knowledge. To support you in this role, we have a variety of tools and internal training available providing many development opportunities both technically and personally. This role offers an excellent opportunity for anyone wanting to grow a career in hydrogeology and/or contaminated land.

You will be required to have an incident role and make yourself available to respond to incidents or provide business continuity support during an incident. This may attract an additional payment and full training.

The Groundwater & Contaminated Land Team work across the North East, working from the office in Newcastle. We provide technical advice on groundwater quality, groundwater resource and land contamination risks and issues, respond to environmental incidents, planning and permit consultations and liaise with various partners including the Coal Authority, water companies and academia to resolve historic and emerging environmental pressures.

· A basic knowledge and experience in Hydrogeology and/or Contaminated Land
· Understanding of the risk associated with Groundwater
· Good level of Microsoft Office package, including Excel
· Strong problem-solving ethos and drive to achieve results
· Strong verbal and written communication skills
· Administrative organisational skills. Filing and maintenance of filing systems

We are based out of Tyneside House, Newcastle we currently adopt a hybrid working arrangement, split between home and office.

We do not accept CVs and so your answers to the below competencies will be used for selection. Please see the competency dictionary within the candidate pack - you may find it helpful to use the STAR approach to answering the questions.

Interviews are expected to be scheduled for week commencing the 3rd of November Please contact rachael.farrimond-wight@environment-agency.gov.uk further information about this role

Tell us about a time when you had to prioritise and deliver high-quality work under a tight deadline. How did you ensure accuracy while meeting the timescale?

Tell us about a time when you had to explain something clearly to someone who didn’t at first agree or understand. How did you get your message across and what was the result?

Tell us about a time when you faced a problem and had to decide between different options. What steps did you take to work out the best solution, and what was the outcome?