American Conservation Experience: Sequoia and Kings Canyon Vegetation Management Internship
ACE is a 501 (c)(3) Non-Profit Organization. To learn more, please visit www.usaconservation.org. Start Date: February 28, 2010 End Date: May 22, 2010 Project Description: Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are hosting three intern positions within the Division of Resources Management and Science. The internships will provide a wonderful opportunity to explore the field of invasive plant management, ecological restoration, and plant propagation and to experience California’s foothills ecosystems while exploring career options in natural resources. The ACE interns will assist Sequoia National Park vegetation staff with early season vegetation management activities in the foothills, including work with other volunteer groups. Work will be primarily in the field. Although all interns will have opportunities for experience in both of the programs, interns will work primarily in one area. Two Invasive Plant Interns will work on a field crew controlling Italian thistle in the foothills, between 1300 feet and 5000 feet elevation. Control techniques will include hand-pulling and herbicide application with backpack sprayers. Interns will help lead a small volunteer group (ages 15-18) which will be assisting with control work one day per week. Interns will usually spend the entire day in the field, driving and/or walking to known infestations utilizing maps and GPS, collecting monitoring data, and conducting control work. Other non-native plant species may be targeted such as Himalayan blackberry, Spanish broom, and periwinkle. Weather and road conditions permitting, there will be a one- week car camping trip Cedar Grove (4500 feet) in Kings Canyon National Park for invasive plant control in corrals, campgrounds and other developed sites. In May, interns will work with other ACE crew members on roadside restoration work, placing native litter and duff mulch to promote plant growth on road shoulders following construction. One Horticulture/Nursery Intern will assist the Park Horticulturalist to propagate and care for native plants in the Ash Mountain Native Plant Nursery. Major duties will include plant care (watering, weeding, and pruning). Other duties may include: transplanting plants to larger containers; plant propagation; maintenance of grounds, facilities, tools and other equipment; soil mixing; and helping lead occasional youth volunteer groups in nursery project work. Project Location: This is an opportunity to work and live in one of the premier National Parks with such diverse resources as giant sequoia groves, alpine peaks, foothill blue oak woodlands, deep canyons, wild and scenic rivers, numerous caves and abundant plant and animal life. The Parks are stunningly beautiful and encompass elevations from 1300 feet to the top of Mt. Whitney at 14,496 feet, the highest point in the lower 48 states, and many varied ecozones ranging through foothill hardwood forests and grasslands, montane mixed conifer belt, sub-alpine forests and treeless alpine zones. During this time of the year the ground above 6000 feet elevation is covered in deep snow, but Spring is in full swing in the foothills. Room and Board: ACE interns will be accommodated in park housing in Ash Mountain Headquarters, just outside the community of Three Rivers, California. Housing is shared with up to three interns. ACE interns will be provided with $70/week to cover the cost of food and incidental expenses. Requirements: Interns should be very physically fit and comfortable working away from roads and trails on steep hillsides. Interns must be able to walk long distances (up to 2 miles) on hilly terrain to a worksite, in varied weather conditions. Potential environmental hazards may include rainy and cold weather at the start of the season or sunny and hot conditions by the end of the season, rattlesnakes, ticks and poison oak. All interns will be given thorough safety orientations to known hazards of the worksites and all proper personal protective equipment that will be required during work. Training will be given in herbicide application before any herbicide work commences. Anyone physically fit, capable of hard work, and between the ages of 18 and 35 may apply. Preference will be given to applicants with an educational background or field experience in Botany, Biology, Forestry, Environmental Science, or other natural resource fields. ACE is appropriate for hard working, positive minded people who want to improve their career opportunities through hard work. To Apply: Please email a resume and cover letter with 3 professional references to American Conservation Experience at i...@usaconservation.org with “Sequoia and Kings Canyon Vegetation Management Internship – ECOLOG referred” in the subject heading. Your application will be considered for all three positions. Applications due by February 10.
