San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board

Placement Site Address: 1515 Clay St. #1400 Oakland, CA 94612

Oakland, CA - City Data Information Link

Mentors: Kristina Yoshida, Environmental Scientist and Kevin Lunde, Senior Environmental Scientist

Number of Corpsmembers at Site: 2

Number of Years Site has Hosted WSP Corpsmembers: 13

Service Hours:

8-hour days: 95 %

10-hour days: 4%

>10-hour days: 1%

Housing Offered: No

Work Vehicle Provided: Yes

Corpsmember Activities:

Data analysis and report writing: 20%

H₂O Monitoring: 25%

GIS Mapping: 5%

Education & Outreach: 2%

Habitat Surveys: 10%

Sediment Surveys 10%

Data Entry: 10%

Commuting To/From Field Sites: 10%

Misc. field work prep (e.g., field permission, recon): 4%

Invasive Plant Removal: 2%

Post-Restoration Monitoring/Maintenance: 2%

Placement Site Objectives & Organizational Needs:

The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board) is a regulatory agency with the mission to preserve, enhance, and restore the quality of our water resources for the protection of the environment and public health. Corpsmembers at this Placement Site will work on a wide array of watershed related projects. They are stationed in the Planning Division, which is tasked with developing water quality plans to identify sources of pollutants and actions to improve conditions. Corpsmembers serve a valuable role in collecting and analyzing non-regulatory water data that cannot be collected without their support.

Mentorship Style:

The Water Board takes a very hands-on and supportive approach to mentorship. As the primary Mentor, I (Kristina) see WSP as a symbiotic relationship where the Water Board gains the necessary help to accomplish our programmatic goals, and also serves as a steppingstone in the Corpsmembers career path. Although we meet every other week for workload check-ins, we also meet monthly to discuss the Corpsmembers overall wellbeing, career goals and to work on resumes and interviewing skills to prepare Corpsmembers for their next step. I am also supportive in finding opportunities at our site or partner groups for Corpsmembers to pursue their interests and gain useful skills. Likewise, I see the importance of giving context and background to all of the projects and tasks the Corpsmembers work on so that they understand the big picture and how they are contributing to it. I have an open-door policy and am available for last-minute check-in meetings as needed. This will be my 11th year of mentoring WSP Corpsmembers, and I am always looking for ways to grow and become a better Mentor.

The Corpsmembers will primarily work with Kristina throughout the program. The Site Supervisor (Kevin) will also participate in bimonthly meetings and provide mentorship and support as needed. Corpsmembers will also work with other Water Board staff on individual office projects, and receive training, assistance and feedback from them directly. Corpsmembers will be trained in field work by Kristina, and after a few days, they will work more independently with their WSP Corpsmember partner or other Water Board staff.

Unique Characteristics of Placement Site:

The Water Board is unique in that it provides its Corpsmembers with rewarding and diverse experiences that serve to protect urban to rural watersheds, but also to contribute to their professional development. The range of job duties and professional backgrounds at this site is broad. Corpsmembers learn a wide variety of skills and work in proximity with professionals with different backgrounds and expertise that will be valuable when they pursue future job possibilities in government, NGO, and/or consulting sectors. As such, most Corpsmembers have found their next job through contacts made working at the Water Board. Corpsmembers get hands on training and experience at the Water Board by collecting and analyzing a wide range of field data, including qualitative and quantitative stream habitat and water quality data. The Water Board also strongly encourages Corpsmembers to have short collaborations with affiliated agencies and organizations to gain additional experience and skills (e.g., storm water, wetland, and fish monitoring). Corpsmembers can also participate in multiple training opportunities to develop skills of interest (e.g., GIS, water policy, statistics).

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities Desired in CM:

Eager to learn

Adaptable

Can work independently after training

Good communication skills

Although it is not required, we also seek Corpsmembers that have the following skills:

GIS, statistical analyses using R, data management, following scientific protocols, report writing

Some knowledge of water resources, water policy, aquatic ecology, water chemistry, environmental science, or environmental engineering