Contaminated Land Specialist

Team / Directorate: Geoscience / Evidence, Policy & Permitting 

Starting salary:  £41,132 rising to £44,988 per annum through annual increments being paid each year (pro rata for part time applicants)

Contract type: Permanent

Work pattern: Full time, 37 hours per week (Part time, annualised hours, compressed hours or term time working considered - discussions at interview stage welcome)

Post number: 201484

The role

We are seeking an experienced Contaminated Land Specialist to take the lead in providing expert technical assessments and advice on contaminated land for new developments. This includes evaluating site investigation reports, conducting controlled waters risk assessments, reviewing remediation statements, and verifying remediation reports.

In this pivotal role, your technical expertise will directly contribute to shaping NRW’s policies, programmes, plans, strategies, and guidance. You will also play a key advisory role to the Welsh Government, assisting in the development of legislation and guidance, while supporting various EU, UK, and Wales Working Groups.

You will collaborate closely with colleagues across Evidence, Policy & Permitting (EPP) and Operations teams, along with officials from the Welsh Government and sector representatives. By doing so, you will actively support NRW’s responsibilities under the contaminated land regime (Part 2A), ensuring that we maintain the highest standards in land management and environmental protection.

As an organisation we support flexible working.  You will be contracted to the nearest NRW office to your home and a suitable hybrid working pattern will be agreed on appointment. Any regular face to face meetings or training will be planned in advance.

To make an informal enquiry about this role, please contact Trystan James trystan.james@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk

Interviews will be conducted via Microsoft Teams.

Successful external applicants will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service Check (DBS) check. We aim to make offers of appointment within 4 to 8 weeks of the closing date.

 

What you will do

• Prepare technical assessments, drawing on a range of complex information and data.
• Manage the preparation of material to inform the development of NRW, WG and other Partners policy, advice and guidance documents; Manage the development of procedures, tools and guidance and lead the delivery of new ways of working.
• Liaise with external stakeholders such as Welsh Government, sector representatives and partners to ensure the timely and effective delivery of project, policy or stagey obligations.
• Advise on evidence needs and opportunities and project manage agreed evidence projects, in line with the agreed evidence programme.
• Support engagement with sectors and partners, WG, Water Users, Local Authorities, industry and those dependent on groundwater in Wales and the UK; and be the lead point of contact for customer queries.
• Be required to attend on-site visits and attend pollution incidents as and when required by the business
• Maintain knowledge of Contaminated Land Science identifying the implications of legislative, technology and market changes for Natural Resources Wales and the related sectors.
• Contribute to task and finish groups, commissioned through the Business Boards, to prepare defined products as required.
• Collaborate with the Team Leader to develop and deliver an agreed Personal Development Plan.  
• Undertake health and safety duties and responsibilities appropriate to the post
• Be committed to Natural Resources Wales Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy, together with an understanding of how it operates within the responsibilities of the post
• Be committed to your own development through the effective use of your personal development plan (known as Sgwrs).
• Any other reasonable duties requested commensurate with the grade of this role.

Your qualifications, experience, knowledge and skills

In your application and interview you will be asked to demonstrate the following skills and experience using the STAR method.

1. Knowledge of: Welsh, UK and EU legislation related to Contaminated Land and Waste; Welsh, UK and Welsh Government policy drivers in Contaminated Land; and the issues and opportunities in Wales.
2. Knowledge and practical understanding of the range of partners and stakeholders and industries involved with Contaminated Land in Wales.
3. Experience of: technical analysis and interpretation of a range of complex environmental information and data sources; analysing large data sets.
4. Experience as a contaminated land specialist or hydrogeologist as a regulator or within the private sector.
5. Degree level qualification in contaminated land/hydrogeology or equivalent.

Welsh language level requirements

• Essential: A1 - Entry level (able to use and understand simple, basic phrases and greetings, no conversational Welsh)

Please note if you do not meet the A1 requirement i.e., ability to understand basic phrases and ability to pronounce Welsh names correctly, then NRW offers a variety of learning options and staff support to help you meet these minimal requirements during the course of your employment with us.

Benefits 

This role will offer a range of benefits, including:

• Civil Service Pension Scheme offering employer contributions of 28.97%
• 28 days annual leave, rising to 33 days
• generous leave entitlements for all your life needs
• commitment to professional development
• health and wellbeing benefits and support
• weekly wellbeing hour to use as you choose

See full details for all the employee benefits you will receive.

Please keep reading

If you think you have what it takes to do this role, but don’t necessarily meet every single point on the job description, please still get in touch and we will be happy to discuss the role with you in more detail.

We’re passionate about creating a diverse workforce and positively encourage applications from under-represented communities. We embrace equality of opportunity irrespective of disability, neurodivergence, ethnic origin, colour, nationality, gender expression and gender identity, marital status, sexual orientation, culture, or religion.   We put the principles of human rights, equality, fairness, dignity and respect at the heart of our values.

We are committed to equal opportunities and we guarantee interviews for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

We want to attract and retain talented and highly skilled staff, so we make sure that our pay scales remain competitive. We advertise the full pay scale on our job descriptions. Appointed candidates start at the first point of the pay scale and annual increments are paid each year.

We want our staff to grow professionally and personally. From leadership development to access to further and higher education courses, our staff have opportunities to expand their knowledge on variety of topics, stay current in their field and continue to learn as their career progresses.  

We are a Bilingual organisation which complies with the Welsh Language Standards.  Welsh language skills are considered an asset to NRW, and we encourage and support staff to learn, develop and use their Welsh language skills. 

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