Professional and Technical
Assistant Scientist Water Quality/Farm Inspections
€45,802 - €71,185

Annual Salary
Cork
Temporary Full-Time

Job Summary

Cork County Council is seeking to establish a panel of Assistant Scientist – Water Quality/Farm Inspections to fill contract posts that arise during the life of the panel.

The candidate will work in the Water Quality/Agriculture Section of the Environment Directorate, Cork County Council. The candidate will be based at the Environment Offices, Cork County Council, Inniscarra, Co. Cork.

Local authorities have responsibility under the European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters) Regulations for the monitoring of waters to determine the extent and trends of pollution arising from agriculture and to carry out inspections of farm holdings for the purposes of the regulations.

Recent Environmental Protection Agency reports show water quality is declining in Ireland and that at current levels of progress, Ireland will fail to meet the EU and national goal of restoring all waters to good or better status by 2027. Agriculture is a significant contributor to this declining water quality.

Local Authorities in collaboration with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage are putting in place an enhanced inspection programme of farm holdings to protect, reverse trends and improve water quality in Ireland.

This position provides a great opportunity to take on a demanding role in one of the largest local authorities in the country at a time when maintaining & improving water quality was never so important. Specific duties will be as assigned by relevant line manager and will typically include (but not be limited to);

• Carry out inspections of farm holdings as required by the European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters) Regulations.
• To generate, maintain and collate data on the inspections of farm holdings.
• To complete annual returns to the EPA on the inspections of farm holdings.
• Collaborate with other agencies, including LAWPRO, ASSAP, Teagasc, DAFM, Dairy Sustainability Initiative, DHLGH and EPA.
• Engage with farmers to identify and manage risks to water quality arising from their farming operations.
• To support / organize / deliver local dissemination events to catchment farmers such as farm walks and meetings and media outputs.
• Prepare cross-compliance reports for cross-reporting of non-compliances to DAFM.
• Prepare enforcement notices and files for enforcement proceedings.
• To represent the local authority as an expert witness and deliver evidence at enforcement proceedings.

General duties include:

• To assist with profile-raising and awareness relating to water quality issues through media and elsewhere through radio/TV interviews, press releases/articles, electronic media and talks.
• Co-ordinate the data requirements for the RMCEI plan and NEMIS system.
• Carry out Health and Safety duties including toolbox talks, risk assessments, method statements and incident reporting.
• Use technology such as drones, survey equipment, sampling equipment, water chemistry meters, data recording devices and internet data sources.
• Assist the local authority environment team in the creation of team plans, workplans and procedures.
• Perform actions to meet objectives under Ireland’s River Basin Management Plan.
• Respond to water pollution incidents.
• Respond to pollution queries and complaints by the public.

Any other duties as may be assigned to the officer from time to time by the local authority and may include the duty of deputising for other officers of the local authority, when required, and such duties as may be assigned to them in relation to the area of any other local authority.

The role requires comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the:

• European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters) Regulations.
• Water Framework Directive.
• Local Government (Water Pollution) Act 1977-1990.
• Water Quality and agricultural impacts.
• Existing knowledge and or experience in Catchment Science and Management and farm inspection skills will be an advantage.

It is essential that the ideal candidates have:

• Ability to develop and maintain productive relationships with colleagues, customers and stakeholders.
• Ability to build networks and successfully influence key internal and external stakeholders.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills, with experience in the preparation of technical reports and the delivery of presentations to a varied audience in various formats.
• Ability to pinpoint the critical information and address issues logically.
• An ability to prepare and present technical reports.
• Ability to deal with complex and confrontational situations.
• Effective investigational skills and the ability to respond to complaints.
• Excellent organisation skills and possess the drive to deliver the required results.
• Strong information and communications technology skills.
• Good understanding of environmental policy, regulation and legislation.
• Have good knowledge and awareness of the statutory obligations of Health and Safety Legislation and the implications for the organisation and the employee, and their application in the workplace.

The above specification is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to him/her from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office.

Further information is available in the Candidate Information Booklet available on our website