Hydroecology Technical Lead

A little more about the aquatic team… 

We work on a wide range of projects in the freshwater environment, including sustainable abstraction studies, river restoration schemes, ecological impact assessments, as well as the design and delivery of ecological monitoring programmes.  The team collaborates widely with in-house teams including catchment science and fluvial geomorphology experts to meet and exceed client and regulatory body requirements.  Our projects are primarily UK based although we also work on a wide range of international projects including development schemes and R&D projects.  Our UK portfolio includes Water Industry Natural Environment Programme projects, such as schemes to identify and restore salmonid spawning habitats; predicting the impacts of abstraction using macroinvertebrate metrics as well as routine monitoring of biological parameters on behalf of water companies.   

Your New Role What’s Involved? 

We are looking to appoint a senior applied aquatic ecologist or hydro-ecologist to join our aquatic ecology team.  This will be a key technical role in delivery of our AMP8 WINEP projects. You will be an experienced hydro-ecologist, or aquatic ecologist with a track record in the delivery of water industry projects backed up with a thorough understanding of the regulatory context for water resources projects in the UK and experienced in preparing ecological assessment reports such as to support Water Framework Directive and Habitats Regulations Assessments .  Ideally, you will be proven in project management of aquatic ecology and hydro-ecology projects, including monitoring budgets and co-ordinating staff resources.  

    The role will include: 

• Delivery of hydro-ecological investigations on behalf of water industry clients including providing specialist aquatic ecological input to water resources projects. 
• Analysis and interpretation of biological and hydrometric data, including outputs from standard biotic indices in the context of assessing impacts from abstraction. 
• Design and delivery of aquatic ecological monitoring programmes to support water resource investigations. 
• Preparation and delivery of interpretive technical reports including for stand alone aquatic ecology studies and in collaboration with other teams. 
• Preparing tender outputs for medium and large-scale hydro-ecology projects including fee estimates. 
• Building and maintaining a strong internal and external profile as a technical expert, for example, through our Practice Area Networks and externally. 

What we will be looking for you to demonstrate… 

• Extensive, relevant experience gained within a professional consultancy, regulatory or industrial role. 
• A clear understanding of regulatory drivers including the Water Framework Directive and Habitats Regulations, in a water resources context. 
• Numerate, preferably with experience in statistical analysis and programming languages such as R. 
• Experienced in interrogating ecological data (macroinvertebrate, macrophyte and/or fish) to understand and manage impacts of abstraction and other pressures on rivers. 
• An enthusiastic, confident and positive approach with excellent communication and reporting skills. 

Don’t quite meet all the criteria? Apply, and we can see how your experience aligns to this role and other opportunities within the team.