Environmental Engineer Green Environmental Management (GEMS) Coordinator

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***

The primary purpose of this position as the GEMS Coordinator will support the management and operation of healthcare facilities and programs needed to protect the environment protect human health from environmental pollution and improve air land and water resources. Duties will include but may not be limited to the following:

• Coordinates the GEMS program in accordance with VA policies and regulatory requirements ((Joint Commission (JC) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
• Ensures that GEMS program shows continual improvement of the environmental programs.
• Applies environmental science and engineering practices and technology to demonstrate the relationships between the operation of the hospital and human health ecosystems environmental media and natural resources.
• Provides leadership and direction to management professional and technical personnel regarding the development and implementation of the GEMS program.
• Plans organizes implements oversees and provides technical assistance with projects to resolve environmental problems.
• Provides technical expertise in the design modification operation and maintenance of VA facilities and infrastructure to ensure compliance with environmental regulations.
• Develops and implements environmental policies procedures and systems.
• Evaluates modifies and implements pollution prevention alternatives to reduce the generation of waste.
• Develops promotional and educational activities to promote stakeholder awareness of environmental issues.
• Participates in Environment of Care and Construction Safety rounds as required.
• Works with Federal State and local environmental and occupational safety and health organizations in areas of mutual interest.
• Keeps abreast of the latest developments in the field of environmental management systems respiratory protection and healthcare decontamination by reviewing technical publications attending technical conferences or professional society meetings and by conversing with industry representatives.
• Performs other duties as required.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm
Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: The work of this position involves both prolonged periods of regular and recurring sitting and periods of moderate physical strain/activity. The incumbent is required to carry a wide variety of equipment / items weighing up to 50 pounds (radiological nuclear pigs are heaviest items). The work of this position also requires regular and recurring periods of walking standing bending climbing or crawling.
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7 2025 drivers licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See Required Documents below for details.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public determining if your employment advances the public interest we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification in writing that your continued employment advances the public interest.

TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-11 GRADE LEVEL YOU MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:

A. DEGREE: Engineering. To be acceptable the program must: (1) lead to a bachelors degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics such as optics heat transfer soil mechanics or electronics.
NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

OR

B. COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: -- college-level education training and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering and (2) a good understanding both theoretical and practical of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:

1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI) Engineer in Training (EIT)1 or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State the District of Columbia Guam or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g. State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example an applicant who attains registration through a State Boards eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.
2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States the District of Columbia Guam and Puerto Rico.
3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical mathematical and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.
4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelors degree in an appropriate scientific field e.g. engineering technology physics chemistry architecture computer science mathematics hydrology or geology may be accepted in lieu of a bachelors degree in engineering provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience e.g. in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive.)

NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

AND

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Requires one full year of specialized experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. To be creditable specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-9) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. The professional engineering experience for entry level position is defined as non-routine engineering work that required and was characterized by (1) professional knowledge of engineering; (2) professional ability to apply such knowledge to engineering problems; and (3) positive and continuing development of professional knowledge and ability. Specialized experience includes: conducting environmental compliance work related to waste management air or water quality spill response or permitting; applying environmental policies and procedures; assessing construction or facility changes for potential environmental effects; identifying compliance deficiencies and appropriate corrective actions; and coordinating environmental compliance projects with multiple organizational units.
NOTE: Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title duties month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities.

OR

SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE: Successfully completed 3 years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree.
NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

OR

COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: Equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate level education and specialized experience may be used to meet total experience requirements.
NOTE: Experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title duties month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

For more information on these qualification standards please visit the United States Office of Personnel Managements website at

Required Experience:

IC