Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary / California Marine Sanctuary Foundation
Urban Water Quality Internship
Host: Since 1995 California Marine Sanctuary Foundation (CMSF) has worked to protect the state's coastal ecosystems while strengthening coastal resilience in the face of population growth, urban and industrial uses, climate change, and resource extraction. Working together with local communities, government agencies, tribal communities, harbors and marinas, and NGOs, we identify and then implement practical and effective solutions to reduce human impacts and increase stewardship of our state's coastal resources. Our core focus is on improving coastal resilience by using an interdisciplinary approach, engaging stakeholders, members of the public, as well as experts to help drive cutting edge and creative solutions. For the past 28 years CMSF has proven to be a strategic partner and innovator in coastal programming.
CMSF partners with the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS) on many projects and this partnership is integral in working toward water quality improvements. MBNMS is one of our nation's largest marine sanctuaries, encompassing more than 6,000 square miles of central California coastal waters that contain a rich array of habitats and marine life, and is surrounded by productive agricultural fields. The sanctuary program provides protection of these natural resources through research and education to foster public understanding and stewardship of this nationally significant marine protected area. MBNMS supports an active and multi-faceted water quality protection program (WQPP) for the sanctuary, for which CMSF is a principal partner.
Location: Monterey (map); travel to water quality collection sites in Salinas and around the Monterey Peninsula is required.
Format: Hybrid
Internship Dates: June 3 - August 16, 2024
Stipend: $8,000
Time Commitment: The internship is a full time, 11-week commitment. Over the 11 weeks, the intern may take up to five days off for personal reasons, vacation, or illness. If participation is less than 100%, the stipend will be prorated.
Position Description and Responsibilities: CMSF works in collaboration with many partners to protect and conserve marine resources throughout California. One project that assists with this effort is the Urban Watch program in Salinas. Urban Watch is a dry weather monitoring program that takes place during the summer months. For this program, various storm drain outfalls are visited to check for flowing water. If flow is noticed, samples are collected, then the city is notified to check for the source of the water. Since it is dry weather there should not be any flow into the storm drains and the source of this flow could be discharging illicitly. Several creeks in Salinas are monitored as well during this program for bacteria, nutrients, and other common urban pollutants. The intern will go out at least twice a month to monitor water quality and debris around the sampling site.
The intern will be responsible for:
- Preparing equipment for sampling;
- Preparing laboratory chain of custody documents;
- Collecting water quality samples for many analytes;
- Writing summary reports from lab data and other environmental observations.
Another aspect of this internship involves outreach and assisting with volunteer recruitment efforts for two volunteer programs, First Flush and Snapshot Day. Specific duties will be discussed and established at the start of the internship, based on the intern’s experience and interests and CMSF’s needs.
At the end of the internship, the intern may be expected to provide the following to CMSF, based
on the specific duties and projects assigned:
- Reports for the Urban Watch program in Salinas for June, July, and August;
- An organized database and metadata for lab results in the California Environmental Data Exchange Network formatting;
- A summary of field/lab studies and findings; and/or
- Draft outreach and education materials and resources for volunteer recruitment to engage further with underserved communities, such as activities to engage the public, web stories, video clips, summaries, and visual presentations to share information with the public and our partners.
Preferred Experience and Capabilities: This internship will require excellent verbal, written, and organizational skills. Experience with data management (MS Office and ArcGIS) is desired. Experience with outreach and education, and previous experience working in the field collecting scientific data is a plus. Intern must have the ability to multitask in a team-oriented process while taking initiative and working independently.
Skills Gained: The intern will gain perspective on science, management, and water quality issues related to MBNMS and the other local municipalities. The intern will gain experience working with a small team and working independently to gather, evaluate, and synthesize information. The intern will also gain hands-on experience working with a dynamic group to implement field studies and water quality improvement efforts. The intern will learn how to operate in a professional office and interact with CMSF and MBNMS colleagues and partners at conservation organizations, universities, and state and federal agencies. The intern will be able to contribute to water quality projects within the Monterey Bay area.
Eligibility/Requirements: Applicants must be able to work independently and interact in a professional manner with the project partners, the public, researchers, and other CMSF/MBNMS staff. Intern must be able to keep excellent notes and organize various streams of information into a coordinated or concise message. Travel is required to be able to access sampling sites in Salinas and around the Monterey Peninsula. A Federal background investigation, to include fingerprints and character references are required. Applicants are also subject to general eligibility requirements.