Physical Scientist in the Office of Water Groundwater Drinking Water Branch

• 3+ years’ experience conducting multi-media environmental field and lab-based research in support of EPA site investigations and remedial actions at Superfund Sites in Ohio, Idaho, and New Jersey. Experience working with USGS, DOE, primary responsible parties, contractors and state agencies.• Analyzed effect of sediment and water biogeochemistry on contaminant mobility and bioavailability, including from mining-enriched metals as well as emerging contaminants like PFAS.• Planned and given technical assistance on Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessments. Published peer-reviewed journal articles, and given oral presentations at national conferences on toxicology and environmental chemistry.

Duties:• Planned and implemented new research studies on the impact of agriculture on floodplain water quality and biogeochemistry in a National Science Foundation Critical Zone Observatory. Gained expertise in the deployment and monitoring of remotely installed sensors for collecting continuous time series data. Installed and monitored fluctuations in groundwater in floodplain areas. Learned how to collect and process soil samples, tree species samples, and groundwater samples for different physical and chemical characteristics. • Conducted scientific analysis of results and communicated research findings at scientific conferences. Reported progress in annual reports to NSF as well as bimonthly meetings with over two dozen professors and students at different universities. Provided scientific and technical analyses on research site over the years to government research scientists, university researchers and students.Related Skills:• Expert in written and oral communication, including grant writing, scientific writing for journal publications, op-eds, blog posts as well as conference presentations and public presentations to local officials and community stakeholders.• Expert in developing and teaching graduate-level courses on a variety of environmental topics, including urban ecology, wetlands management and soil science.• Expert in wetland delineation for CWA Section 404 permitting.• Developed robust network of colleagues that are experts in fields of toxicology, stream ecology, and earth sciences while serving in school leadership roles.• Well-versed in a variety of analytical methods to assess ecosystem structure and function. Experienced in the use of nonlinear models, spatial statistics, autocorrelation and time series analysis.

Duties:• Designed, coordinated, and implemented city-wide study of soil lead contamination in Durham, North Carolina covering 35 km2, the first city-wide study on soil lead in the state.• Developed and co-taught seminars on soil lead contamination, childhood exposure threats, and soil lead remediation in Spring 2018 and Fall 2019 Duke semesters.• Supervised 10 students in collecting over 1,000 soil samples and measuring samples for soil lead. Trained studies in the use of portable x-ray fluorescence spectrometry, soil preparation and sample archiving. Related Skills:• Extensive experience translating scientific and technical information and data on environmental health issues of lead contamination to public stakeholders, homeowners and government officials.• Able to quickly research new scientific topics, identify gaps in knowledge, and propose hypothesis-driven projects with resolvable questions. • Experience with application for IRB approval, grant writing and project management training.• Expert in x-ray fluorescence spectrometry and urban soil sampling protocol.• Experience with spatial statistics.

Duties• Worked as a legal assistant representing a client in the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic. Collected and synthesized 30 years’ worth of evidence for ongoing hazardous waste contamination from spent potliner and human exposure threat from a facility regulated under the US EPA Resource Conservation and Recovery Act program. Reviewed over 3,000 pages of publicly available reports in North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality document management system from consultants, North Carolina Division of Waste Management, and the US EPA.• Lead the writing and publication of a 50-page report documenting findings and evidence for hazardous waste contamination. Presented findings to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and over 50 community members in November 2019. • Provided scientific and technical expertise, using principles of watershed hydrology, soil science and biogeochemistry, to a public health issue.Related Skills:• Expert in drafting agendas for case management meetings, writing weekly case reviews, developing a personal work plan with deadlines, as well as written products for others to review.• Experience with researching and reviewing publications and reports from the US EPA RCRA Corrective Action Program. Experience with legal codes surrounding regulated US EPA hazardous wastes in the Code of Federal Regulations.• Experience with federal Superfund site assessment process and post closure completion process.• Built professional relationships with Duke Law professors and alumni that are experts on the protection of natural resources and public health.

Duties & Accomplishments:• Developed GIS-based parcel prioritization model to help guide management decisions regarding land protection. Networked with state conservationists to improve model. • Completed 60-page report on SAHC’s conservation values, protected lands and unprotected wild lands across 3,600 square miles, 5 mountain ranges, 10 major rivers and 3 national forests. Distributed report to SAHC board of trustees for future press releases.

Duties & Accomplishments:• Researched and compiled innovative methods for land trust involvement in farmland protection leveraging state and national policies. Analyzed alternatives to conservation easements through interviews with farmers, land trust professionals and community planners. • Met with representatives at state legislature to advocate for CTNC’s conservation initiatives.

• Oversaw collection and overseas transport of soil samples as part of research for the U.N. Millennium Development Project. Determined microbial response to different agricultural practices.

• Set up controlled microcosm experiments on the response of native microbial communities to invasive microbial species. Supervised 50-day experiments with rigid check-in requirements, requiring time management.• Calibrated, maintained, and cleaned infra-red gas analyzer. Synthesized findings into discussion on niche complementarity and effects of microbial immigration due to climate change.

• Wrote monitoring plan for Leesville Lake Association. Conducted fieldwork on lake water quality. Compiled historical water quality data, analyzed nutrients with discrete analyzer, wrote out QA/QC methods to launch monitoring program for lake.