Specialist Ecosystems

Environmental Ecosystem Specialist / Plant Ecophysiologist

• Build your career with a global organisation who values development
• Diverse remit spanning across approvals, operations and closure
• Permanent Full Time | Perth based

About the role

We are seeking a passionate and engaged Ecosystem Specialist / Plant Ecophysiologist to join the Iron Ore Environment Operations Team. The position will be part of a team of technical specialists based in Perth, reporting to the Senior Ecosystems Advisor.

With a specialty in plant ecophysiology, your role will interact with approvals, operations, closure and water teams, with a focus on groundwater dependent ecosystems and riparian vegetation. Ideally you will also have experience with remote sensing and the associated spectral properties that relate to landscape analysis techniques. The team covers a diverse range of projects including flora and vegetation, water quality, freshwater and marine ecosystems, subterranean and terrestrial fauna providing opportunities for growth and development.

Key responsibilities of the role include:

• Lead ecological projects and contribute toward innovation in the assessment of riparian and groundwater dependent ecosystem values
• Provide advice on the design and implementation of environmental monitoring programs
• Contribute to the development, improvement and peer review of survey methods, processes, and technologies, to ensure continuous improvement of environmental performance
• Provide technical input into the design and development of environmental management plans
• Review detailed ecological scopes of work and technical reports
• Interpret, manipulate and trend ecosystem/ecological data
• Communicate results, trends and potential environmental risks to both technical and non-technical audiences
• Partner with internal customers, subject matter experts and external stakeholders to address business risks and improve environmental performance
• Ad-hoc travel to Pilbara sites

About you

To succeed in this role, you will have:

• Preferred speciality in Ecophysiology, groundwater dependent ecosystems, riparian vegetation and remote sensing
• Strong understanding of environmental legislation and Environmental Management Plan frameworks
• Experience with addressing the EPA’s “Flora and Vegetation” and “Inland Waters” Environmental factors via the WA EIA process
• Experience in environmental management plan and monitoring program design, and creation of detailed scopes of work
• Knowledge of ecosystem processes, with the ability to statistically analyse, trend, interrogate, and interpret ecological data
• Highly developed written communication and reviewing skills with the competence to critically evaluate technical reports
• Excellent verbal communication, influencing, interpersonal and problem solving skills
• A post-graduate degree in an Ecological or Environmental discipline, with at least 7 years’ professional experience preferred

What we offer

Be recognised for your contribution, your thinking and your hard work, and go home knowing you’ve helped the world progress.

• A work environment where safety is always the number one priority
• Flexible working from home arrangements as per operational requirements
• 18 weeks of gender-neutral and equal paid parental leave, with continued superannuation contributions whilst employees are on unpaid or half paid parental leave
• A competitive base salary reflective of your skills and experience with annual incentive program
• Comprehensive medical benefits including subsidised private health insurance for employees and immediate family
• Attractive share ownership plan
• Company provided insurance cover
• Extensive salary sacrifice & salary packaging options
• Career development & education assistance to further your technical or leadership ambitions
• Ongoing access to family-friendly health and medical wellbeing support
• Leave for all of life’s reasons (vacation/annual, paid parental, sick leave)
• Exclusive employee discounts (banking, accommodation, cars, retail and more); and
• Local relocation packages offered for Australian residents only

About Rio Tinto

Every idea, every innovation, every little thing the world calls ‘progress’ begins with a first step, and someone willing to take it: explorers, inventors, entrepreneurs. Pioneers. 

For nearly 150 years, Rio Tinto has been a company of pioneers – generations of people spanning the globe, all with the grit and vision to produce materials essential to human progress. 

Our iron ore has shaped skylines from Shanghai to Sydney. Our aluminium – the world’s first to be certified “responsible” – helps planes fly and makes cars lighter. Our copper helps wind turbines power cities and our boron helps feed the world, and explore the universe.Our diamonds help us celebrate the best parts of life. 

Where you’ll be working

Perth based but with a working focus on supporting operations in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. In the Pilbara region of Western Australia, we own an integrated portfolio of iron ore assets supported by functional teams in the Perth hub: a world-class, integrated network of 16 mines, four independent port terminals, a 1,700 kilometre rail network and related infrastructure – all designed to respond rapidly to changes in demand.

Every Voice Matters

At Rio Tinto, we particularly welcome and encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, women, the LGBTI+ community, mature workers, people with disabilities and people from different cultural backgrounds.

We are committed to an inclusive environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves. We want our people to feel that all voices are heard, all cultures respected and that a variety of perspectives are not only welcome – they are essential to our success. We treat each other fairly and with dignity regardless of race, gender, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, age, sexual orientation or anything else that makes us different.

Applications close on 12 November 2022 (Rio Tinto reserves the right to remove advertised roles prior to this date)