Watershed Modeler

King-County,-W; Seattle (WA); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

King County invites internal applicants for a Watershed Modeler (Engineer III) to steer hydrologic and water quality modeling using the WQBE toolkit, evaluate stormwater and wastewater scenarios, and guide investments for environmental outcomes.

You will lead projects, coordinate with internal clients, develop usable processes, and translate complex results for technical and nontechnical audiences while fostering cross-team collaboration.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in geology, hydrology, environmental science, or related field.
• 5 years’ experience with lumped, grid, or hybrid watershed models.
• 3 years ESRI GIS experience (ArcMap/ArcPro).
• Experience with R, MATLAB, Python, VBA for data analysis.
• Professional project management experience managing scope, schedule and budget.

Responsibilities

• Negotiate scope, schedule, and budget with internal clients for the toolkit.
• Lead WQBE projects, define tasks, schedules, and budgets; manage consultants.
• Use existing tools to modify watershed models and run analyses.
• Develop GIS layers, Storymaps, and scripts to support modeling findings.
• Draft memos and presentations to explain results and methods.

Skills

Project management

Hydrologic modeling

GIS analysis

Programming (R, Python, MATLAB)

Stakeholder communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in geology, hydrology, environmental science or related field

Tools

ArcGIS (ArcMap/ArcPro)

R

Python

MATLAB

SQL

VBA

Job description

This recruitment is open only to current King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) employees and will be used to fill a Term-Limited Temporary (TLT) position or Special Duty Assignment (SDA) with an anticipated duration of 2 years and 3 months. External applicants are not being considered. In addition to the current opening, this recruitment may be used to establish a pool of qualified candidates to fill future Watershed Modeler (Engineer III) TLT/SDA roles throughout the Department of Natural Resources & Parks (DNRP) over the next six (6) months.

Make an Impact

Are you a current King County employee interested in using your technical expertise to help shape decisions that protect water quality, people, salmon, and orca? Join us in applying King County's Water Quality Benefits Evaluation (WQBE) toolkit to help evaluate stormwater and wastewater investments and identify strategies that improve environmental outcomes.

This internal opportunity combines hydrological modeling, project management, and collaboration while offering the chance to expand your impact and build partnerships across King County.

About the Role

In this Watershed Modeler (Engineer III) role, you will lead and conduct modeling projects that evaluate how water quality and stormwater runoff may change under different future conditions. Your work will provide County decision-makers with information they can use to evaluate stormwater and wastewater strategies and prioritize investments that achieve meaningful environmental outcomes.

You will manage projects that apply the WQBE toolkit to new planning scenarios, partner with internal clients to understand and scope their needs, and develop and document processes that make the models easier and more efficient to use. You will also work across disciplines, teams, and divisions to strengthen the usability of the modeling toolkit and translate complex results into useful information for technical and nontechnical audiences.

This position provides an opportunity to expand your experience in hydrologic and water quality modeling, project management, data analysis, tool development, and technical communication while building relationships across King County.

About the Team

You will join a Seattle-based team that provides the scientific foundation for King County's work to protect water quality and restore habitat for the benefit of people, salmon, orca, and other wildlife. Our work includes environmental investigations, monitoring programs, modeling, data analysis, and technical services that support County programs and regional partners.

This position is part of the Toxic Chemical Assessment Unit, which conducts fish tissue monitoring, evaluates toxic chemicals in our systems and environment, and designs studies to answer complex questions for utility and natural resource managers.

Our team works extensively across King County programs and divisions and with local jurisdictions, universities, consultants, and state agencies. We value interdisciplinary collaboration and strive to ensure our work supports equitable environmental outcomes and protects communities most vulnerable to environmental hazards.

Commitment to Equity, Racial and Social Justice

King County, named after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is a diverse and vibrant community that represents cultures from around the world. We prioritize equity, racial and social justice, making it a foundational and daily expectation for all employees. As a Watershed Modeler (Engineer III), you will actively apply these principles in all aspects of your work. Learn more about our commitment at http://www.kingcounty.gov/equity.

What You Will Be Doing

• Negotiate, monitor, and control scope, schedule, and costs or level of effort with internal clients of the toolkit.
• Serve as project manager for WQBE project including responsibilities such as defining tasks, schedules, level of effort and budget for County staff and scopes of work for project consultant. Review and approve products and invoices from project consultant. Manage client relationships and update project supervisor.
• Use County’s existing custom tools to modify existing watershed LSPC and optimization models SUSTAIN and run new analyses.
• Develop new tools (e.g., GIS layers, Storymap) to visualize and interpret modeling results for use in a variety of settings and audiences. Write scripts, code, macros, etc. to process data for model use.
• Draft technical memos and/or presentations to explain modelling outcomes and write reports to document data collection, analyses, and outcomes.

Qualifications You Bring

• Education or experience equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree in geology, hydrology, environmental science, environmental engineering or closely related discipline.
• Five years of experience using lumped parameter (e.g., HSPF, LSPC, SWMM), grid (e.g., VELMA), and/or hybrid versions (e.g., HEC, WMS, WWHM, etc.) of watershed modeling frameworks.
• Intermediate level (3 years) experience working independently in ESRI GIS applications (e.g., ArcMap, ArcPro).
• Work experience using R, MATLAB, Python, VBA, or other programming language(s) for statistical analyses and processing of data.
• Professional project management experience such as developing, monitoring, and controlling project scope, schedule and budget.

Competencies You Bring

• Manages Complexity: Making sense of complex, high quantity, and sometimes contradictory information to effectively solve problems.
• Plans and Aligns: Planning and prioritizing work to meet commitments aligned with organizational goals.
• Manages Conflict: Handling conflict situations effectively, with a minimum of noise.
• Communicates Effectively: Developing and delivering multi-mode communications that convey a clear understanding of the unique needs of different audiences.
• Manages Ambiguity: Operating effectively, even when things are not certain, or the way forward is not clear.

It Would Be Great if You Also Bring

• At least 5 years of work experience or postgraduate degree experience developing:
  • HSPF- or LSPC-based modeling systems for watershed analyses.
  • SUSTAIN models for optimizing stormwater treatment.
  • Hydraulic modeling systems (e.g., HEC, SWMM, or other) for defining representative hydraulic conveyances (e.g., open channel, lakes, floodplains, wetlands, pipes, etc.)
  • Managing large databases using software such as SQL, MS Access, MATLAB, or R.
  • Experience with ESRI products (e.g., ArcPro) to create, manipulate, and analyze raster and shapefile datasets to model stormwater runoff.
• Experience communicating technical information and concepts clearly in writing and verbally to peers and clients.
• Work experience managing consultant contracts.

Working Conditions

• Work Location: The Toxic Contaminants Assessment Unit (TCA) works in a hybrid model, with days in the office as well as telecommuting. The ratio of remote to onsite work will be dependent on business needs and is subject to change. The primary onsite location is King Street Center, 201 S. Jackson St, Seattle, WA 98104. Employees must reside in Washington state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements. King County has a robust collection of tools and resources to support working remotely. The individual selected for this opportunity will join an innovative and progressive team that is redefining how we work as we transition to the department's hybrid environment. Employees will be provided with a County-issued laptop and must maintain an in-home workspace with an internet connection where they can reliably perform work and remain available and responsive during scheduled work hours.
• Work Schedule: This full-time position works a 40-hour work week. This position is covered under the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and is overtime eligible.
• Union Representation: This position is represented by PROTEC Local 17A.

King County's Vision, Mission, and ACTIVATE Values unite us.

King County serves residents with a relentless sense of urgency, delivering on commitments with transparency and accountability. We are action-oriented, creative problem solvers who collaborate across roles, engage directly with communities, and challenge the status quo to achieve meaningful impact. As a unified team, we uphold high ethical and stewardship standards, embrace change, stay curious, and continuously improve. Across all interactions, we listen first, act quickly, and stay aligned as a team to earn and sustain public trust. Learn more about our Vision, Mission, and ACTIVATE Values here and visit our Why work at King County page here.

King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer.

No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on sex, race, color, national origin, ethnicity, religious affiliation, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age except by minimum age and retirement provisions, pregnancy, status as a family caregiver, parental status, marital status, military status or status as a veteran who was honorably discharged or who was discharged solely as a result of the person's sexual orientation or gender identity or expression, citizenship or immigration status, genetic information, or other protected class. However, to the extent that distinction or differential treatment on the basis of citizenship or immigration status is authorized by either federal or state law, regulation, or government contract, it is not an unfair practice.

Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.