Laboratory Supervisor III Job at Dept of Environmental Protect
Req # 22000CR4 – Laboratory Supervisor III – Supervisor of the DELS/WES Environmental Microbiology and Toxicology Laboratory – Lawrence
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) is the state agency responsible for ensuring clean air and water, the safe management of toxics and hazards, the recycling of solid and hazardous wastes, the timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills, and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources. MassDEP’s mission is to protect and enhance the Commonwealth’s natural resources – air, water, and land – to provide for the health, safety, and welfare of all people, and to ensure a clean and safe environment for future generations. In carrying out this mission, MassDEP commits to address and advance environmental justice and equity for all people of the Commonwealth; provide meaningful, inclusive opportunities for people to participate in agency decisions that affect their lives; and ensure a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve.
MassDEP seeks applicants with expert knowledge of and experience with the analysis of regulated and unregulated microbiological and toxicological contaminants and parameters in environmental sample matrices for the position of Laboratory Supervisor III in the Environmental Microbiology and Toxicology Laboratory (EMTL) within the Division of Environmental Laboratory Sciences (DELS) in the Bureau of Planning and Evaluation (BPE). DELS serves as the state principal drinking water laboratory as required for primacy under the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act. DELS programs generate scientific information/data from the laboratory analysis of environmental samples and other activities that directly support MassDEP’s mission to protect human health and environmental quality, and serve as critical links in the state’s disaster and homeland security preparedness efforts.
This position will be based in MassDEP’s historic Senator William X. Wall Experiment Station (WES), Lawrence, MA (Massachusetts’ state environmental laboratory facility). Under the supervision of the DELS-WES Director, the Laboratory Supervisor III will function as the principal supervisor of the DELS EMTL. In addition, the Laboratory Supervisor III will serve as DELS-WES Health and Safety Officer and work with the MassDEP Health and Safety Officer to implement MassDEP-wide health and safety policies at WES; and supervise WES environmental health and safety, building safety equipment inspection, laboratory safety, and biological safety programs. Duties for this position include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Supervising and maintaining all the operations of the EMTL – one of three major DELS-WES analytical laboratories.
- Supervising, training, and evaluating the performance of all EMTL personnel and assigning tasks to personnel to achieve the maximum level of laboratory efficiency and productivity.
- Supervising and performing, in support of MassDEP programs and regional offices, highly complex analyses of air, potable and non-potable water, wastewater, biosolids, fish/biological tissue, soil, sediment, industrial liquid waste, solid and hazardous waste, and other types of environmental samples, including enforcement samples, for regulated and unregulated microbiological and toxicological contaminants and parameters according to U.S. EPA and other standard methods, including bacterial indicators, Legionella spp. and other bacterial pathogens, bacteriophages, enteric viruses, and protozoan pathogens using culture and microscopic methods; microbial source identification (e.g., human-specific and non-human molecular markers), bacterial, viral, and protozoan pathogens, and microbial toxin-producing genes (e.g., cyanotoxin genes) using PCR, qPCR, ddPCR, dPCR, and other molecular-based analytical methods; acute and chronic toxicity using microbial and other toxicity assays (e.g., Microtox assays); cyanotoxins using ELISA methods; and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD).
- Supervising the procurement specification, operation, repair, service, and overall maintenance of all EMTL instrumentation, including microscopes, automated nucleic acid extraction platform, nucleic acid bioanalyzer, gel electrophoresis instrumentation, various PCR platforms, Microtox toxicity analyzer, ELISA analyzers, DO meter for BOD analysis, etc.
- Supervising the procurement specification and ordering of all operating supplies/materials for the EMTL.
- Supervising and maintaining the quality assurance (QA)/quality control (QC) program of the EMTL, including maintaining analytical proficiency, and performing first-level and second-level QA reviews of analytical data produced by EMTL analysts.
- Ensuring EMTL compliance with U.S. EPA requirements for laboratories certified under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
- Supervising the preparation/updating of standard operating procedures (SOPs) and applicable sections of the DELS/WES Laboratory Quality Assurance Plan (QAP) for the EMTL.
- Supervising the entry of EMTL sample information and analytical data into the MassDEP Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) and reporting of EMTL analytical data.
- Supervising the development and validation of new methods for the analysis of microbiological and toxicological contaminants and parameters in environmental samples.
- Reviewing scientific literature to keep informed of new procedures, methods, materials, and findings in the fields of environmental analytical microbiology and toxicology.
- Training and providing other assistance to MassDEP regional and program staff in the proper environmental sampling procedures for the analysis of microbiological and toxicological contaminants and parameters.
- Serving as the DELS-WES expert on microbial source identification and emerging pathogens in watersheds. Advising MassDEP regional and program staff on sampling and testing methods for microbial source identification in watersheds. Assisting MassDEP regional and program staff in submitting samples involving multiple DELS-WES laboratories, such as microbial source tracking projects.
- Advising MassDEP regional, program, and legal staff on environmental microbiological and toxicological analyses and providing courtroom testimony (oral and written) on analytical test results.
- Maintaining EMTL preparedness under the U.S. EPA Regional Laboratory Response Plan and participating in functional exercises when scheduled.
- Assisting in the conduct of applied research pertinent to MassDEP programs on the analysis of microbiological and toxicological contaminants and parameters in the Massachusetts environment, and in documenting research results for publication, including publication in peer-reviewed journals.
- Serving as WES Health and Safety Officer and supervising the WES environmental health and safety, building safety equipment inspection, laboratory safety, and biological safety programs.
- Developing and implementing DELS-WES health and safety operational plans and procedures and providing staff training.
- Developing and implementing environmental health and safety and laboratory safety programs for the WES facility to meet MassDEP-wide health and safety policies, Massachusetts state law, and U.S. OSHA requirements.
- Advising DELS-WES Director on facility requirements and laboratory operational safety for testing CDC Level “B” pathogens.
- Working with the DELS-WES Director and Administrative/Facility Manager to oversee the WES hazardous waste management program and WES Environmental Management System (EMS).
Preferred Qualifications at Hire:
- A bachelor’s or graduate degree with a major in the field of microbiology.
- Six to nine (6-9) years of experience with analytical laboratory procedures and instrumentation used to test environmental sample matrices for microbiological and toxicological contaminants and parameters as described in the duties listed above.
- Knowledge of the principles and practices of the organization and operation of a chemical, biological, bacteriological, and/or other physical sciences laboratory.
- Ability to conduct research and testing in a chemical, biological, bacteriological and/or other physical sciences laboratory.
- Experience supervising the operations of a major analytical microbiology and toxicology laboratory.
- Ability to train personnel and assign work according to the nature of the project, capabilities of personnel, and availability of resources.
- Knowledge of and experience with analytical laboratory quality assurance/quality control procedures.
- Knowledge of and experience with the development and validation of environmental analytical microbiology and toxicology methods.
- Knowledge of the techniques used for collecting, handling, and transporting environmental samples.
- Knowledge of statistics as applied to environmental laboratory analytical data.
- Ability to analyze and determine the applicability of microbiological and toxicological laboratory data to draw conclusions and make appropriate recommendations.
- Knowledge of environmental health and safety, and biological safety, including administrative controls, and personal protective and other safety equipment.
- Knowledge of emergency preparedness and response as related to environmental laboratories.
- Ability to communicate effectively in both oral and written forms, with strong scientific writing skills.
- Ability to adjust to changing situations and to meet emergency or changing program requirements.
- Ability to respect confidentiality and exercise sound judgment/discretion in a professional manner.
Minimum Entrance Requirements:
Applicants must have at least (A) six years of full-time, or equivalent part-time, professional or technical experience in chemistry, biology, histology, bacteriology, microbiology, biochemistry or medical laboratory technology, the major duties of which included laboratory analysis and the interpretation of laboratory results and (B) of which at least three years must have been in a supervisory, administrative or managerial capacity, or (C) any equivalent combination of the required experience and the substitutions below.
Substitutions:
I. A Graduate degree with a major in chemistry, biology, histology, bacteriology, microbiology or medical laboratory technology may be substituted for a maximum of one year of the required (A) experience.*
- Education toward such a degree will be prorated on the basis of the proportion of the requirements actually completed.
NOTE: No substitutions will be permitted for the required (B) experience.
Special Requirements: None
Comprehensive Benefits
When you embark on a career with the Commonwealth, you are offered an outstanding suite of employee benefits that add to the overall value of your compensation package. We take pride in providing a work experience that supports you, your loved ones, and your future.
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