Join an agency committed to creating a healthy breathing environment for every Bay Area resident while protecting and improving public health, air quality, and the global climate!
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (District) is a regional government agency, committed to achieving clean air to protect the public's health and the environment. The District accomplishes this goal through regulation of industrial facilities and various outreach and incentive programs designed to encourage clean air choices. The District's jurisdiction encompasses all of seven counties - Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Napa, and portions of two others - southwestern Solano and southern Sonoma.
At the District, we take pride in our commitment to fostering a workplace that values diversity and promotes cultural awareness. We prioritize employee engagement by providing a collaborative and inclusive environment that encourages active participation and open dialogue. Additionally, we believe in pay equity and strive to create an equitable compensation structure. With a strong emphasis on work-life balance, we understand the importance of supporting our employees' well-being both inside and outside the workplace. Join us in a dynamic and inclusive culture where your contributions are celebrated and your growth is nurtured.
The District is currently accepting applications for the position of Senior Environmental Planner in the Planning and Climate Protection Division. This is an open recruitment for two (2) full-time, limited-term contract positions. Both positions are for a 2-year term.
This is a Limited Term Contract Employee (LTCE) Position. LTCE positions are funded by grants or other designated funds which are not part of the District’s ongoing general fund budget. LTCE positions are subject to individual employment contracts and are limited to the duration of their funding source. Regular employees have the right to apply for an LTCE position. However, LTCE positions are not subject to the terms of the Employee Association MOU, and LTCE employees serve on an at-will basis.
About You in the Position - Air Quality Planning Section (AB 617 Role)
Are you interested in reducing air pollution and improving health outcomes in the most impacted and overburdened communities in the Bay Area? Are you motivated to develop and implement plans, projects and policies that address air pollution injustices and inequities? Are you energized by collaboration, enthusiastic about inter-disciplinary work, and committed to working to build and maintain a culture of shared trust and respect?
The AB 617 Senior Environmental Planner will join a high performing and motivated team of professionals who work in deep partnership with frontline communities most impacted by air pollution. You will lead and participate in the successful preparation and implementation of community-scale air quality plans in partnership with Air District staff, community members and partner organizations, and work to support communities and local governments determine how to best improve air quality and reduce health disparities while centering equity and addressing environmental justice. To be successful in this role, you must be a strong team player, have strong communication and analytical skills and be able to work with people of varied backgrounds and perspectives, including low-income communities of color and communities overburdened by air pollution. You will leverage your knowledge of land use, transportation, air quality, equity and environmental justice to conduct research, analyze issues, prepare planning documents, and craft recommendations to support decision making. You will also interface with local, regional, and state agencies in developing and implementing these community-scale air quality plans.
Assembly Bill 617
Assembly Bill (AB) 617 (C. Garcia, Chapter 136, Statutes of 2017) was signed into law alongside Assembly Bill 398 which extended California’s cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gas emissions. AB 617 addresses environmental justice concerns regarding the extension of the cap-and-trade program by requiring the California Air Resources Board, with input from community groups, air districts and others, to select locations around the state to prepare community-led plans to reduce emissions of toxic air contaminants and criteria pollutants. Communities can also be selected to prepare community-led monitoring plans. The primary requirement for community selection is a demonstrated high cumulative exposure burden to air pollution and associated health disparities. In the Bay Area, and around the state, these communities are often low-income communities of color.
In 2017, West Oakland and Richmond were selected as the first communities to participate in the AB 617 program. Since then, East Oakland and Bayview Hunters Point/Southeast San Francisco communities have been added to the program. The Air District works closely with these communities to both develop and implement emission reduction and monitoring plans.
About You in the Position – Climate Protection Section (EPA CPRG Role)
Are you a visionary thinker? Are you committed to developing solutions to climate change that benefit communities? Do you enjoy solving problems in a team atmosphere? Do you like working with different stakeholders to develop policy solutions? The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is leading a regional effort to develop the first-ever Bay Area Regional Climate Action Plan. The EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Senior Environmental Planner will participate in this effort as a member of a high performing and motivated team.
To be successful in this role, you must be a strong team player who is able to adapt to changing circumstances and priorities. You will make use of your knowledge of how local governments operate to address planning and policy issues. You will also draw on your experience or interest in addressing GHG mitigation by working with communities to identify local priorities, while at the same time syncing local goals with regional and statewide climate planning efforts. Your ability to review and assess policies and strategic approaches will support your work in developing potential GHG mitigation strategies and measures in a variety of economic sectors.
EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant
As part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the US EPA launched the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program, providing $250 million nationwide to states and metropolitan regions to develop regional greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction plans, and $4.3 billion in nationally competitive grants to implement measures in those plans. The Air District has received $1 million from this EPA program to lead an eight-county climate action planning process. This planning effort identifies GHG mitigation measures across economic sectors to achieve aggressive GHG reduction goals and benefit frontline communities.
DEFINITION
Under direction, provides lead direction to environmental planning staff and conducts complex long-range planning for land use and environmental assessments; performs related work as assigned.
DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS
This is the advanced lead level in the professional planning series. Incumbents provide lead direction to environmental planners and perform highly specialized and difficult planning functions. Incumbents are assigned to design and implement programs that require considerable professional knowledge and the use of independent judgement. This class is distinguished from Principal Environmental Planner in that the latter has responsibility for creating projects and new programs, and handling the most difficult, sensitive, novel or critical projects.
