I. M. Systems Group (IMSG) www.imsg.com is hiring an economist with knowledge and work experience in natural resource economics to support NOAA NMFS Office of Habitat Conservation (OHC). The economist will estimate the local, regional, and national economic impacts and value of the habitat protection and restoration activities that the OHC supports and undertakes, with the goal of providing information to help guide habitat conservation priorities and increase the awareness of the economic benefits of habitat conservation to the nation. In addition to national programs to protect and restore habitat, OHC is managing $170 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 to conduct coastal habitat restoration projects that create and save jobs and restore valuable coastal and marine habitats. The initial assignments for the successful candidate for this position will be to support economic analyzes related to these ARRA projects. Duties: On the ARRA tasks that will be a top priority, the successful candidate will work with a team of individuals in NOAA’s Restoration Center, economists in the National Marine Fisheries Service, and external partners to: • Coordinate the economic and jobs metrics associated with the ARRA habitat conservation projects, including developing and directing the system to track job creation and local economic impact using an economic impact model such as IMPLAN. The focus will be on estimating the direct and indirect jobs created and induced consumer spending from this recovery effort; • Lead the effort to scope and implement a grant or contract for socio-economic monitoring on a selected set of ARRA projects; • Serve as the point of contact for queries from oversight agencies regarding the economic impacts and progress of these projects; • Develop an approach to estimate the cumulative economic impact on local communities of an integrated set of habitat conservation projects located in a single watershed to determine if a clustering strategy is more beneficial than conducting individual projects in multiple watersheds. Qualifications:
• Strong background in natural resource economics, with particular emphasis in estimating cost effectiveness and economic impact analysis and/or habitat valuation techniques; • Experience with economic input/output models such as IMPLAN used to assessment local economic impact. • Strong leadership skills to work with a broad array of entities to design the analyses needed to characterize economic benefits of the conservation projects. • Strong organizational skills to design and implement systems to track and analyze economic information. • Excellent written and oral communication skills Education Requirements: • Required: Bachelor’s degree in natural resource economics with a minimum of two years work experience in job related to habitat resource assessments. • Preferred: Master’s degree in natural resource economics with a minimum of three years work experience in the field, especially in a state or federal government agency with coastal or marine habitat responsibilities. To Apply: Please send your resume, salary requirements, contact information for three (3) references and a cover letter explaining how your qualifications meet the requirements of the position to [email protected] with the following subject heading: NOA09017 - Natural Resource Economist. The application deadline for this position is May 8, 2009. Resumes received beyond this date will not be considered. IMSG is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
