Senior Water Quality Technician

Position Summary

The position reports to the Vice President of Facility Operations. The Senior Water Quality Technician is expected to perform all aspects of the Water Quality Laboratory including sample testing, quality control, data interpretation, data entry as well as aid in troubleshooting and correction of parameters. The Sr. technician is to assist in developing relevant SOPs and protocols, maintain and calibrate equipment, stock laboratory supplies, and aide in Mississippi Aquarium research & development. The position supports Facility Operations, Animal Care and Veterinary Services to provide the highest environmental quality for the animal collection of the Mississippi Aquarium.

Essential Duties And Responsibilities

• Performing daily inspections on all animal life support systems, reporting, and working to correct any anomalies.
• Assist LSS operators with daily routine tasks as well as perform preventative maintenance on various equipment.
• Receive, distribute, and store various products such as chlorine, acids, and salts.
• Perform general maintenance tasks for beautification of the property.
• Complete general repairs of faulty equipment.
• Perform water quality analyses.
• Availability to work weekends, holidays, on-call rotation, weather events and respond to emergencies on a 24-hour basis if needed.
• Participate in staff meetings and provide relevant input.
• Unloading and warehousing of operational consumables and supplies.
• Undertake special projects as assigned by the Vice President of Facility Operations.
• Communicates and maintains working relationships with guests, staff, supervisors, other departments, suppliers, professional associates, and colleagues in related industries.
• Participates in staff meetings and provides input for improvements of the water quality lab, animal care and life support operations.
• Maintains awareness of industry-related activities and trends.
  
  
  

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in biology, Chemistry, Marine Biology or related field, or relative experience.
• Minimum of 3-5 years of experience in maintaining close system aquaria in a public aquarium setting
  
  
  

Required Knowledge, Skills And Abilities

• Qualified candidates must be familiar with recirculating system life support for both small and large exhibits.
• Qualified candidates must have a strong understanding and experience with spectrophotometry, titrations, and handheld meters.
• Preferred candidates will demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of water quality parameters for fresh, brackish, and marine systems.
• Preferred candidates will understand basic microbiology techniques.
  
  
  

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Team Requirements

• Safety & Security - All Team Members are required to adhere to all Mississippi Aquarium safety and security standards.
• Attendance & Appearance - To maximize the guest’s experience, all Team Members are required to adhere to Mississippi Aquarium standard operating procedures regarding attendance and dress code policies as it relates to individual job functionality. Tattoos and piercings must be appropriate and in keeping with a professional image. Depending on the work area, management reserves the right to determine that tattoos will need to be covered during your shift.
• Sales & Guest Services - Our forward-thinking business model requires listening to and understanding the needs of our guests both internal and external. To that end, we must always be focused on the guest experience which is the key driver for return guest visitation and increased sales.
• Team Partnership - All Team Members are focused on supporting each other to complete the guest experience. Therefore, supporting, facilitating, and participating in activities that promote team effectiveness is vital to our organization.
  
  
  

PHYSICAL DEMANDS & WORK ENVIRONMENT

The physical demands and work environment described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls; reach with hands and arms; climb stairs; balance; stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl; talk or hear; taste or smell. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 60 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color and peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is exposed to weather conditions prevalent at the time. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.