What are the responsibilities and job description for the Environmental Scientist Staff DCL-A position at Department of Environmental Quality?
Salary
$4,770.00 - $8,589.00 Monthly
Location
Shreveport, LA
Job Type
Classified
Job Number
26-114 ES DCLA HS
Department
Department of Environmental Quality
Division
OEC NWRO
Opening Date
11/04/2026
Closing Date
11/9/2026 11:59 PM Central
About this Job
The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality’s (LDEQ) mission is to provide service to the people of Louisiana through comprehensive environmental protection in order to promote and protect health, safety, and welfare.
The LDEQ is seeking a qualified environmental professional for a leadership opportunity within the Northwest Regional Office Surveillance Division. This promotional position offers the opportunity to lead complex environmental investigations and compliance inspections, with a primary focus on water quality, while providing technical guidance to regional staff.
Minimum Qualifications
A bachelor’s degree in an environmental, biological, atmospheric, chemical, health, nuclear or physical science field, an engineering field, a geography/geosciences field, a natural resources field, or in a statistics or quantitative methods field plus three years of experience in an environmental program, nuclear energy or radiation protection program; Geographic Information Systems (GIS); an environmental, analytical, or research laboratory, LIMS (Lab Integrated Management Systems), or laboratory auditing; OR
A master’s degree in an environmental, biological, atmospheric, chemical, health, nuclear or physical science field, an engineering field, a geography/geosciences field, a natural resources field, or in a statistics or quantitative methods field plus two years of experience in an environmental program, nuclear energy or radiation protection program; Geographic Information Systems (GIS); an environmental, analytical, or research laboratory, LIMS (Lab Integrated Management Systems), or laboratory auditing; OR
A doctorate in an environmental, biological, atmospheric, chemical, health, nuclear or physical science field, an engineering field, a geography/geosciences field, a natural resources field, or in a statistics or quantitative methods field plus one year of experience in an environmental program, nuclear energy or radiation protection program; Geographic Information Systems (GIS); an environmental, analytical, or research laboratory, LIMS (Lab Integrated Management Systems), or laboratory auditing.
A master’s degree in an environmental, biological, atmospheric, chemical, health, nuclear or physical science field, an engineering field, a geography/geosciences field, a natural resources field, or in a statistics or quantitative methods field plus two years of experience in an environmental program, nuclear energy or radiation protection program; Geographic Information Systems (GIS); an environmental, analytical, or research laboratory, LIMS (Lab Integrated Management Systems), or laboratory auditing; OR
A doctorate in an environmental, biological, atmospheric, chemical, health, nuclear or physical science field, an engineering field, a geography/geosciences field, a natural resources field, or in a statistics or quantitative methods field plus one year of experience in an environmental program, nuclear energy or radiation protection program; Geographic Information Systems (GIS); an environmental, analytical, or research laboratory, LIMS (Lab Integrated Management Systems), or laboratory auditing.
Supplemental Qualifications: One year of environmental scientific or technical experience at or above the Environmental Scientist 3 level. Qualifying experience may include experience in permitting procedures and program requirements, reviewing and evaluating operational data, reviewing/editing SOPs, and/or grant management and reporting.
Job Specification
The official job specifications for this role, as defined by the State Civil Service, can be found here.
Job Duties and Other Information
Job Duties:
- Coordinate and conduct complex environmental compliance inspections, primarily focused on water quality, and provide technical leadership during multimedia inspections.
- Lead or conduct investigations into challenging citizen complaints and represent the region at public meetings to explain environmental issues.
- Train and guide staff on water quality sampling, oversee ambient water quality monitoring activities, and ensure adherence to QA/QC standards and departmental procedures.
- Serve as a technical expert and incident leader for environmental emergencies, assist with interpreting complex regulations, and review inspection and incident reports.
- Assist with maintaining and improving information and data-management systems, including updating SOPs, ensuring data accuracy, and providing technical support and training for regional staff.
Position-Specific Details:
Appointment Type: Promotion-Internal Open only to current permanent employees of DEQ.
Location: Caddo Parish
Compensation: This position offers a Special Entrance Rate (SER) listed below. This is the minimum compensation that may be offered. The job title and salary offered will be determined based on qualifications and experience.
- Environmental Scientist DCL-A: $31.38 per hour
- Office of the Secretary
- Office of Management and Finance
- Office of Environmental Services
- Office of Environmental Compliance
- Office of Environmental Assessment
How To Apply:
No Civil Service test score is required in order to be considered for this vacancy.
Applicants are responsible for checking the status of their application to determine where they are in the recruitment process. Further status message information is located under the Information section of the Current Job Opportunities.
- Information to support your eligibility for this job title must be included in the application (i.e., relevant, detailed experience/education). Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of completed education and experience sections on your application. Applications may be rejected if incomplete.
Please make every effort to attach a copy of your transcript to your application if possible (PDF format preferred). The selected candidate will be required to submit original documentation upon hire. You must submit an equivalency evaluation statement for any international degree(s) by the closing of this announcement.
Contact Information:
For further information about this vacancy, contact:
Heidi Seba
Human Resources
LA Department of Environmental Quality
P.O. Box 4303
Baton Rouge, LA 70821
225-219-3867
This agency participates in the E-Verify system for verification of citizenship and employment authorization.
Louisiana is a State As a Model Employer (SAME) that supports the recruitment, hiring, and retention of individuals with disabilities. Equal Opportunity Employer.
Louisiana State Government represents a wide variety of career options and offers an outstanding opportunity to make a difference through public service. With an array of career opportunities in every major metropolitan center and in many rural areas, state employment provides an outstanding option to begin or continue your career.
As a state employee, you will earn competitive pay, choose from a variety of benefits, and have access to a great professional development program:
As a state employee, you will earn competitive pay, choose from a variety of benefits, and have access to a great professional development program:
Insurance Coverage More information can be found at https://info.groupbenefits.org/
Parental Leave – Up to six weeks paid parental leave
More information can be found at https://www.civilservice.louisiana.gov/Parental-Leave/Default.aspx
Holidays and Leave – State employees receive the following paid holidays each year:
- New Year's Day
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day,
- Mardi Gras,
- Good Friday,
- Memorial Day,
- Independence Day,
- Labor Day,
- Veteran's Day,
- Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.
State employees earn sick and annual leave which can be accumulated and saved for future use. Your accrual rate increases as your years of service increase.
Retirement – State of Louisiana employees are eligible to participate in various retirement systems (based on the type of appointment and agency for which an employee works). These retirement systems provide retirement allowances and other benefits for state officers and employees and their beneficiaries. State retirement systems may include (but are not limited to):
- Louisiana State Employees Retirement System (www.lasersonline.org). LASERS has provided this video to give you more detailed information about their system
- Teacher's Retirement System of Louisiana (www.trsl.org),
- Louisiana School Employees Retirement System (www.lsers.net), among others