Chemist II - Environmental Chemist

Who We Are:

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) is the state agency responsible for ensuring clean air, land, and water, the safe management of toxics and hazards, the recycling of solid and hazardous wastes, and the preservation of the state's wetlands and coastal resources.

 Who We Serve:

Massachusetts was the first state in the nation to combine energy and environmental agencies under one Cabinet secretary. The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EOEEA) serves Commonwealth residents interested in outdoor recreational activities, clean energy solutions and those who work with animals and livestock. Equally, EOEEA works with energy consumers, power companies, clean energy providers, and farmers to delicately balance the interaction with environmental protection laws and regulations while being a cornerstone for our economic prosperity.

Job Opening:

The Department of Environmental Protection, seeks applicants for a Chemist II - Environmental Chemist in the DELS Environmental Organic Chemistry Laboratory (EOCL) to perform the following duties:

Position Summary:

Work experience and knowledge in the analysis of ambient air samples for carbonyl compounds and other toxic organic compounds using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for a Chemist II position in the Division of Environmental Laboratory Sciences (DELS) within the Bureau of Planning and Evaluation (BPE).  DELS serves as the state principal drinking water laboratory as required for primacy under the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act.  DELS programs generate scientific information/data from the laboratory analysis of environmental samples and other activities that directly support MassDEP’s mission to protect human health and environmental quality and serve as critical links in the state’s disaster and homeland security preparedness efforts.

This position will be based in MassDEP’s historic Senator William X. Wall Experiment Station (WES), Lawrence, MA (Massachusetts’ state environmental laboratory facility) and will function as an Environmental Chemist in the DELS Environmental Organic Chemistry Laboratory (EOCL).  Duties for this position include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Performing highly complex analysis of ambient air samples for carbonyl compounds using HPLC according to U.S. EPA Compendium Method TO-11A and California EPA Method CARB 1004, and maintaining analytical proficiency in support of the MassDEP Bureau of Air and Waste (BAW) – Air Assessment Branch (AAB).  Providing analytical support for other regulated and unregulated organic chemical contaminants/parameters in ambient air and other environmental matrices, as needed, including pesticides, herbicides, organic disinfection by-products, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) according to U.S. EPA and other standard methods using HPLC, GC, and GC-MS.
2. Operating, repairing, servicing, and maintaining the advanced laboratory instrumentation listed above.
3. Assisting in the implementation and maintenance of the EOCL's quality assurance (QA)/quality control (QC) program.  Performing first-level QA reviews of organic analytical data produced by other EOCL analysts.
4. Preparing/updating standard operating procedures (SOPs) and applicable sections of the DELS-WES Laboratory Quality Assurance Plan (QAP) for the EOCL.
5. Entering sample information and analytical data into the MassDEP Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) and generating sample analytical reports from the LIMS.