Senior Environmental Project Manager - Water Quality Permitting and Compliance

Short Description

Bowman has an opportunity for a Senior Environmental Project Manager for our Water Quality Permitting and Compliance team in Davis, California.

At Bowman, we believe in creating opportunities for aspiring people to thrive and achieve ambitious goals. That's why a career at Bowman is more than a job. It is an opportunity to be part of a diverse and engaged community of professionals, to be treated as a respected and valued member of a motivated team and to be empowered to do exceptional work that advances the best interest of everyone involved. We recognize the importance of creating a work environment that is both rewarding to our employees and supportive of our unwavering commitment to provide unparalleled service to our clients.

Purpose

Provide technical and project management expertise for Bowman's Natural Resources: Permitting and Compliance Team in delivering NPDES, stormwater, aquatic pesticide, irrigated lands, and related water quality regulatory services to public agency, water and irrigation district, agricultural, and private-sector clients. This is a hybrid technical/project management role: the Senior Environmental Project Manager will oversee the technical quality of the team's work, provide guidance for the development and performance of its staff, and the growth of the practice through client relationships and business development.

The Senior Environmental Project Manager will coordinate with engineers, project managers, scientists, clients, and regulatory agencies to deliver projects on schedule and on budget.

Responsibilities

Leadership and Direction

• Receive broad guidance from senior-level management on key objectives, critical issues, and policy matters, and manage people and processes to ensure effective execution.
• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of scientists and compliance professionals, including goal setting, performance management, and career development.
• Plan and balance team workload and staffing across multiple concurrent projects, and anticipate resource needs as the practice grows.
• Review work produced by staff for technical accuracy, regulatory defensibility, and overall quality.
• Help develop processes and provide input on achieving company and office operational excellence while growing the region and office.
• Receive broad guidance from senior-level management relating to overall key objectives, critical issues, new concepts, and policy matters and general parameters for execution. Manage people and processes to ensure effective execution. Review work produced by staff for quality assurance.

Business Development and Client Relationships

• Serve as a senior point of contact for clients, building long-term relationships with water agencies, irrigation districts, agricultural coalitions, and construction and development clients.
• Identify, pursue, and win new work, including prospecting, marketing the firm's water quality capabilities, and responding to RFPs and RFQs.
• Prepare scopes of work, fee estimates, proposals, contracts, and change orders.
• Collaborate with other Bowman offices and service lines to cross-sell and deliver integrated solutions.
• Drive profitability and growth through sound project and financial management, including tracking budgets, utilization, and revenue goals for the team.

Technical Leadership and Project Delivery

• Lead and manage project teams from proposal through project close-out, ensuring work is completed on time and within budget while also performing own project duties.
• Provide technical direction and quality review for NPDES permitting and compliance work, including individual and general permits, permit applications and notices of intent, monitoring programs, and annual and regulatory reports.
• Direct stormwater compliance services, including SWPPP development and implementation, construction site monitoring and inspections, BMP design and inspection, and qualified precipitation event planning.
• Oversee aquatic pesticide permitting and irrigated lands regulatory program support, including application plans, field monitoring and sampling, and laboratory data quality assurance.
• Support Clean Water Act Section 401 and 404 and CDFW Section 1602 permitting, and technical water quality input to CEQA documents.
• Represent clients and the firm in meetings and negotiations with the State Water Resources Control Board, Regional Water Quality Control Boards, and other regulatory agencies.
• Review project changes, anticipated contract alterations, and additional work requests that may affect staffing or budget.

Success Metrics and Competencies

Leadership and Business

• Strong leadership and communication skills, with a proven track record in project and personnel management.
• Sound business acumen, including a working understanding of financial reports and metrics and of the business principles of a consulting firm.
• Strong marketing and business development skills and mindset, with a commitment to driving profitability and growth.
• Outstanding client management skills and a commitment to promoting the firm's reputation through quality of work.
• Ability to manage competing demands, establish priorities, and manage multiple time-sensitive projects and project teams.
• Ability to communicate effectively with all levels of the organization and with external partners, including scientists, engineers, surveyors, clients, landowners, government agency personnel, and the general public.
• Flexibility, tact, and excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate across offices and facilitate agreement.
• High degree of discretion in managing confidential information.
• Self-reliance and the ability to operate independently with limited direction.
• Commitment to becoming a "citizen" of the broader organization, breaking down barriers and silos, and aspiring to grow and advance within the company.

Technical

• In-depth knowledge of California water quality regulation, including the Clean Water Act, the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, and NPDES permitting programs.
• Ability to learn, understand, and apply environmental laws and regulations, agency policies, and permitting requirements, and to translate them into practical guidance for clients.
• Knowledge of waters of the U.S. and State, wetlands, and the interaction between water quality permitting, CEQA, and species and habitat considerations (including waterbody management and harmful algae bloom response).
• Commitment to quality, with a strong sense of urgency in responding to clients and regulators.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science, Ecology, Biology, Water Resources, or a related field.
• Five or more (8+) years of relevant experience in water quality permitting and compliance, including NPDES permitting (stormwater and/or aquatic pesticide, irrigated lands, or wastewater programs).
• Eight or more (8+) years of project management experience.
• Three or more (3+) years of experience leading or supervising technical staff.
• Ability to work on-site at least three (3) days per week.
• Demonstrated business development experience, such as building client relationships, developing proposals and scopes, and winning new work.
• Registered Professional with current certification(s) relevant to water quality permitting and compliance (e.g., PE, PG, PCA, QSD, QSP, QISP, CESSWI, or CPESC).
• Demonstrated experience in the generation of high-quality annual reports with the ability to review the work of others.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook).
• Must hold a valid state driver's license and successfully pass a motor vehicle check.

Preferred

• Strong preference for Certified Erosion, Sediment and Storm Water Inspector (CESSWI) and/or Qualified Industrial Stormwater Practitioner (QISP).
• Master's degree in a related field.
• California Qualified SWPPP Developer (QSD) and/or Practitioner (QSP) certification.
• California Pest Control Adviser (PCA) license and experience with aquatic pesticide permitting.
• Experience supporting irrigated lands regulatory program coalitions or water and irrigation district clients.
• Experience preparing CEQA initial studies, mitigated negative declarations, or technical sections of EIRs.
• Experience with surface water sampling programs, biological monitoring and assessments, aquatic toxicity testing, and laboratory data quality assurance.
• Familiarity with relevant tracking and data systems (e.g., SMARTS, CEDEN, and GIS tools).
• Experience managing project budgets, backlog, and revenue targets.

About Bowman

Are you ready to build a career that makes a lasting impact? At Bowman, our people are at the center of everything we do. We’re committed to creating an environment where employees can thrive both personally and professionally, while helping to shape the infrastructure of tomorrow.

A career at Bowman means being part of a collaborative, forward-thinking organization where innovation, inclusion, and growth are encouraged at every level. We offer competitive compensation, a supportive work environment, and benefits designed to help our employees succeed.

Salary and eligible variable compensation (if any) commensurate with experience. Range $105,000 - $152,000 and includes a comprehensive benefits package.

Our comprehensive benefits package includes:

• Medical, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance
• 401(k) retirement savings plan with company match
• Paid time off, sick leave, and paid holidays
• Tuition reimbursement and professional development support
• Discretionary bonuses and other performance-based incentives
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP), wellness initiatives, and employee discounts

Eligibility for certain benefits may vary based on position, location, and employment status.

Physical Demands and Working Environment

• Primarily indoor professional office environment which may include bright/dim light, noise, fumes, odors, and traffic.
• Mobility around an office environment.
• Frequent and prolonged use of standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines.
• Frequent outdoor work environment which may include adverse weather conditions, varying temperatures, excessive noise, and/or potential hazards.
• Mobility around a job/construction site to include walking, bending, crawling, climbing, squatting, or kneeling and wearing of required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
• Primarily local travel during the business day, although some out-of-the-area and overnight travel may be required according to the needs of the business.
• Occasional lifting or carrying up to 20 pounds.
• Occasional pushing or pulling up to 20 pounds.
• Occasional reaching outward or above shoulder.

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Job Description Disclaimer

Note: While this job description is intended to be an accurate reflection of the job requirements, it is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Management reserves the right to modify, add, or remove duties from particular jobs and to assign other duties as necessary at any time with or without notice.

Bowman is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace where all employees feel valued and respected. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status. For our EEO Policy Statement, please click here. If you’d like more information on your EEO rights under the law, please click here.

Bowman has an obligation to provide and maintain a safe, healthy, and productive environment for its employees and clients. We are committed to maintaining a drug and alcohol-free workplace.

If you have any questions about the application process, please email [email protected].