Job Specification
Position Title:
Senior Scientist
Job Code:
15406 - Research Scientist 4 NatRes
Purpose of Position :
Lead the scientific section of the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre, providing expert scientific knowledge, advice and testimony, in all aspects of emergency management, in particular nuclear emergency preparedness. To develop, review, assess, and interpret policy,
legislation, reports, papers, plans and operating procedures involving scientific and technical issues. To provide group team leadership to scientists and risk analysts within the section and overall scientific advice/recommendations to senior levels of management.
Duties / Responsibilities :
1) Providing scientific authority, team and project leadership, guidance, direction, and support to the ministry as the Head, Scientific Section of the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre (POC). This will include identifying, recruiting and training members of the Technical Group, and during an emergency or exercise, directing and guiding members of the group.
2) Responding to nuclear and non-nuclear emergencies or participating in emergency exercises by gathering, analysing and providing technical data and information, making scientific and technical reports and recommendations; providing solutions to issues/problems to senior management. Being available as a duty SSO on a 24/7 basis to respond to an emergency. This may involve working long stressful hours, working outside of normal office hours and being called back to work after hours.
3) Developing and maintaining emergency plans and procedures such as the Scientific Section Procedures, the Provincial Liquid Emission Response Procedures, and the General Province-wide Monitoring Plan.
4) Evaluating, reviewing, assessing, and interpreting policy, legislation, reports, scientific papers, plans and procedures. Providing technical support to the development and maintenance of the Provincial Nuclear Emergency Response Plan (PNERP) and Provincial Emergency Response Plan (PERP).
5) Representing, defending and explaining scientific and technical aspects of the Ministry's nuclear emergency policies, plans and procedures, as an expert, to clients and the public, at meetings, conferences, judicial and quasi-judicial proceedings and representing the Branch on Ministry, multi-agency committees, including national and international forums.
6) Developing and conducting training, exercises and drills to train and evaluate technical plans and procedures. Providing support to and developing material for the Provincial Training Program and Provincial Exercise Program.
7) Planning, coordinating and conducting developmental or applied research on new or innovative scientific approaches where few or no precedents exist in an office environment. Providing leadership and guidance in the development and maintenance of the Provincial Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment Program. Supervising/Providing Team leadership to nuclear scientists, social scientists and risk analysts.
8) Providing scientific and technical input and advice on the development and revision of emergency plans, operating procedures, exercise scenarios e.g. the Provincial Nuclear Emergency Response Plan and the Provincial Emergency Response Plan, and other emergency management related issues to senior management.
9) Writing, editing and reviewing Briefing Notes, plans, procedures, reports, papers, and guidelines.
10) Developing and delivering oral presentations and speeches, training sessions and courses, and preparing the required audio visual aids, training materials and handouts.
1 1) Providing technical leadership direction, and setting up scientific working groups, sub-committees and teams to address and resolve specific scientific or technical issues.
12) Assisting in the development, maintaining and implementing specialized emergency management software programs to evaluate technical data during an emergency.
Staffing and Licensing :
A graduate degree from a university of recognized standing in physics, nuclear physics, nuclear or chemical engineering, chemistry or the equivalent combination of education and at least plus seven years' experience in related field, from a university of recognized standing, plus several years experience. Valid Ontario Driver's License and Provincial Security Clearance.
Knowledge :
Job requires current and sound knowledge in health and radiation physics, nuclear physics or nuclear engineering to plan and execute innovative studies and research, setting or modifying established precedents.
Job requires knowledge and understanding of social sciences and risk management principles.
Job requires knowledge of science at an expert level, and of relevant international, federal, provincial nuclear regulations, legislation e.g. Emergency Plans Act, Nuclear Liability Act, Nuclear Safety and Control Act and Regulations, and related nuclear emergency plans and procedures e.g. Federal Nuclear Emergency Plan, Provincial Nuclear Emergency Response Plan, Municipal Nuclear Emergency Plans, nuclear facility emergency plans and procedures; changes in legislation, policies and procedures, and to lead in building consensus among peers, ministry staff and external stakeholders.
Job requires knowledge in software applications, including state of the art approaches, scientific data base management and statistical techniques to evaluate data, to interpret results and to prepare reports.
Job requires knowledge of scientific methodologies, testing and sampling protocols to support, explain, and defend scientific findings at local, provincial, national and international forums, and to apprise scientific community of issues that may have an impact on established practices.
Job requires awareness of scientific knowledge and expertise to initiate and complete projects, identifying and weighing scientific uncertainties that may impact on projects.
Skills :
Job requires analytical, investigative and research skills at an expert level, to resolve unique scientific problems using leading edge/novel approaches to determine scope of problem, to conduct independent specialized research, to summarize findings and provide conclusions and recommendations e.g, determine dose projection or establish venting of containment strategy.
Job requires reasoning and logic to develop creative solutions to accomplish objectives with limited resources, considering operational and scientific implications e.g. impact on plans and procedures.
Job requires judgment and evaluative skills to work on issues that have multiple, interrelated and interdependent steps frequently with data gaps and lack of precedents.
Job requires reviewing, extracting and applying current scientific theories, interpretations and findings to accomplish objectives e.g. procedures for coordinating the response to a release of triturated water.
Job requires excellent written communication skills to prepare scientific, technical reports / papers. Job requires ability and experience in presenting reports, publications and documents for Ministry, legal proceedings and for peer review at national and international conferences. Job also requires written and oral communications skills to present and gain acceptance of scientific findings with provincial and community
government officials, in academia, private sector, industry, the public and others, and to develop logical arguments and testimony, to build consensus, explain and defend the ministry's position.
Job requires ability to develop and deliver training presentations, courses including the development of audio visual and handout materials.
Job requires leadership and interpersonal skills to lead technical team and projects, and to communicate plans and changes.
Job requires ability to oversee contractors or joint ventures.
Freedom of Action :
Job requires working within scientific protocols, Ministry and government policies, guidelines and objectives. As a senior scientific expert and team leader, independent planning, developing and implementing scientific projects and studies to achieve program; results of work may have far reaching impacts e.g. changes in the Provincial Nuclear Emergency Response Plan.
Job requires independent decision making and recommendations on approaches to problems, by selecting and validating them using own expertise. Work published in scientific reports, findings and interpretations are accepted as accurate.
Job requires referring problems that may impact on other areas of responsibility in the
Branch or Ministry e.g. new standards affecting program delivery or lack of data or
cooperation with clients/industry to the manager.
Demonstrated ability to initiate and independently carry out and supervise scientific
research; ability to analyze and interpret data, assess the validity of results and prepare
reports, as shown by publication of scientific papers of high standard.