Las Cienegas NCA Trail Restoration Intern (BLM Tucson) – AmeriCorps

(1 opening)

Conservation Legacy Program: Arizona Conservation Corps

Site Location: BLM Tucson Field Office, 3201 E. Universal Way, Tucson, AZ 85756

Term of Service:

• Anticipated Start Date: 1/20/2025

• Anticipated End Date: 12/25/2025

• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 1700 Hours

Purpose:

This is an AmeriCorps position with Arizona Conservation Corps (AZCC), which is an AmeriCorps program of Conservation Legacy. The member selected for this position will be serving at BLM Tucson Field Office as an AmeriCorps member with Arizona Conservation Corps, and completing service projects for the Tucson Field Office.

AZCC aims to continue the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930's, and is focused on connecting youth, young adults, and recent era military veterans with communities and conservation service projects on public lands. AZCC operates programs across Arizona that engage individuals and strengthen communities through service and conservation. AZCC has program offices in Flagstaff and Tucson.

Bureau of Land Management (BLM):

The BLM Tucson Field Office (TFO) manages more than 600,000 acres of desert, mountains, and grasslands within five southeastern Arizona counties and shares the international border with Mexico. The field office is responsible for stewardship of eight National Landscape Conservation System units: San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA), Las Cienegas National Conservation Area (LCNA), Ironwood Forest National Monument, four wilderness areas, 63 miles of river suitable for Wild and Scenic River designation and the Gila River Canyons passage of the Arizona National Scenic Trail. The Tucson Field Office also oversees six properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places and seven Areas of Critical Environmental Concern. Public lands within the Tucson Field Office also provide excellent opportunities for outdoor recreation including world-renowned birding along the San Pedro River. The Tucson Field Office is a part of and shares office space with the BLM Gila District Office.

Description of Duties:

The BLM Tucson Field Office (TFO) is looking to create a trail crew to maintain, improve, and implement land use plan decisions for the Las Cienegas National Conservation Area through sustainable and restorative methods.

The intern will work to construct, establish, and maintain new trails and re-route existing trails onto new travel corridors, using various tools and equipment, installing water-bars, building rock walls and trail steps, reducing vegetation overgrowth along trail routes, repairing trail tread, and installing and/or repairing signs.

Projects that the interns will be involved with will require:

1. Reestablishment of the North Canyon/ Arizona Trail Connector Trailhead parking and establishment/construction of all North Country Trail segments. Approximately 12 miles of trail constructed in a sustainable manner.
2. Establishment/construction of Arizona Trail Connector from North Canyon to Oak Tree Trailhead on Forest Service. Approximately 7 miles of trail constructed in a sustainable manner.
3. Establishment/construction of the Empire Ranch HQ connector from the North Canyon Trailhead to the Heritage Trail near the Empire Ranch Headquarters.
4. Completion of these projects will benefit areas which have seen significant rises in user traffic, allowing them to not only be restored but also to become more sustainable for users in the future.

The intern will be exposed to job shadowing and mentoring provided by the park rangers and outdoor recreation planners. The intern will be provided with tools and how-to trainings on use of tools and equipment, road and trail system maps, an explanation of the tasks, an overview of proposed trail projects, and with appropriate PPE. The intern will be required to use check-in/check-out protocol with park rangers.

Shadowing and mentoring would include construction of erosion control structures, trail tread construction and maintenance, vegetation clearance and reducing vegetation on the trail tread, development of a trailhead parking site, sign installation and maintenance, GPS mapping and data entry, and proper use of hand tools.

Essential Responsibilities and Functions:

• Assist with transportation system road and trail sign installation and maintenance.
• Install new road system signs along entry points.
• Install new trail signs along entry points and along trail system.
• Post road and trail system maps at designated locations identified by park rangers.
• Conduct monitoring and maintenance of trail systems by hiking trail alignments to document condition of trails.
• Repair trail tread as needed.
• Check erosion control devices or add as needed.
• Ensure that vegetation is reduced and not affecting trail path.
• Ensure that trail signs are readable and replace signs that have been weathered.
• Install signs at locations as identified by park rangers.
• Assist volunteers or partnerships with trail projects.
• Conduct GPS mapping of trail systems (The intern will be trained in the use of GPS tools on the ground for map making and in the use of Google Earth for mapping).

Qualifications:

• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• At least 18 years of age.
• Has received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate; or has not dropped out of elementary or secondary school to enroll as an AmeriCorps participant, and agrees to obtain a high school diploma or its equivalent prior to using the AmeriCorps Education Award.
• Agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check.

• Willing to work outdoors.
• Familiarity with tools and equipment for outdoor recreation maintenance. Examples may include
• shovels, picks, rakes, Pulaski, pole saw, hand saw, pressure washer, weed trimmers, loppers.
• Familiarity with reading maps and mapping applications on laptops, phones, or tablets.
• Ability to drive off-road with 4x4 vehicle.
• Able to lift a minimum of 50 pounds.
• Ability to talk to people while working in the field.
• Highly self-motivated.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with outdoor recreation management either with a degree (Associate or Bachelor’s) or previous experience with a federal agency (BLM, Forest Service, National Park Service) or state and local government.
• Able to walk and hike distances of more than one mile.

Physical Requirements:

Conservation Legacy is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals and will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to perform essential functions. Some positions may require periodic overnight travel, non-traditional hours, ability to move across varied terrain, use program-specific tools and a range of technology on an infrequent or frequent basis. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects. Ability to safely drive an organizational vehicle may also be required for some positions. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Time Requirements:

• Typically, this position is expected to serve Monday – Friday, 40 hours per week, but exact service schedules may vary. A half hour lunch break will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service.
• Member may be required to participate in national, state, or local service projects or events as part of their service term.

Orientation and Training:

• Member will receive an Arizona Conservation Corps Individual Placement Program New Member Orientation at start of service that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.

Benefits:

• Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $7,395.00 with successful completion of position.
• Living Allowance of $500 per week.

• Additional Benefit of $200 per week.

• Public Lands Corps Certificate*
• Healthcare Coverage provided by The Corps Network and Cigna.
• Childcare Coverage.
• Qualifies for Student Loan forbearance and Interest Payment reimbursement through AmeriCorps.

*To be eligible for a Public Lands Corps certificate, members must be between the ages of 18-30, or up to 35 if a military veteran, inclusive, at the time the individual begins the term of service and must complete 640 service hours or more to qualify.

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of hours, the member has satisfactorily completed assignments, and if the member has met other performance criteria that were clearly communicated at the beginning of the term of service.

Reporting requirements include, but are not limited to, bi-weekly timesheets and accomplishment tracking.

Supervisor Name and Contact Information:

This position reports to Robert Walter (Natural Resource Specialist), Anthony Johnson (Outdoor Recreation Planner), and Jody Barker (Park Ranger) with the Bureau of Land Management’s Tucson Field Office.

To Apply:

Please submit a resume and cover letter along with the online application by clicking the APPLY link on this page.

If you have questions, contact AZCC’s Individual Placement Coordinator Preston Sands at psands@conservationlegacy.org.

Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to hiring a breadth of diverse professionals and encourage members of diverse groups to apply. This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, and military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public in appropriate languages.

We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with AmeriCorps requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.