Students Needed as Salmon River, Eastern Lake Ontario Dunes Stewards:
Seasonal Jobs Promote, Protect Natural Resources

Contact:
Mary Penney, NY Sea Grant, Oswego, 315-312-3042

OSWEGO, NY, March 30, 2009 – College and graduate students are needed to promote ecologically responsible use of New York’s natural resources along the Eastern Lake Ontario Dunes & Wetlands Area and Salmon River Corridor. Up to 8 students will be paid to work with the Eastern Lake Ontario Dune Steward and Salmon River Steward programs coordinated by New York Sea Grant in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, The Nature Conservancy and New York State Parks in 2009.

“The stewards promote environmentally-sound recreational use of these vital and unique natural resources and encourage willing compliance with guidelines designed to protect the resources. This year they will be participating in research and monitoring surveys, hosting field walks and programs on a variety of topics, interacting with those who enjoy the outdoors and contributing to a new Steward program blog,” says Steward Coordinator Mary Penney of New York Sea Grant, Oswego, NY.

Four Eastern Lake Ontario Dune Stewards will spend their summer on the beaches of Eastern Lake Ontario providing public education programs, patrolling a 17-mile stretch of fragile sand dune, beach and wetlands areas in Oswego and Jefferson counties, and conducting habitat maintenance and restoration. Assignment areas include El Dorado Nature Preserve, Black Pond Wildlife Management Area (WMA), Lakeview WMA in Jefferson County, and the Sandy Pond Beach Natural Area, and Deer Creek Marsh WMA in Oswego County.

Two Salmon River Stewards will work from late May through August monitoring New York State Department of Environmental Conservation properties from the upper Redfield Reservoir to Port Ontario in Oswego County. Their venues include public fishing access sites, the Salmon River Fish Hatchery, New York State Unique Areas, and State Forest lands. Two other Salmon River Steward positions are available during the fall academic semester.

Students are encouraged to speak to faculty about whether the position may meet internship requirements.

“Working as a Steward is excellent training for students interested in careers in environmental law enforcement, natural resource management including forestry, and teaching,” Penney says.

Penney is recruiting applicants with a minimum of two years combined education and experience in environmental education, natural resources management, biology, environmental studies or a related field. Desirable candidates will have interpersonal and writing skills, a willingness to work weekends and holidays, and enthusiasm for protecting the ecosystem. Dune stewards must be prepared to walk up to 8 miles a day.

Interested applicants may send or email a cover letter and resume to Mary Penney, New York Sea Grant, SUNY Oswego, Oswego, NY 13126 or email mp357@cornell.edu.

The Eastern Lake Ontario Dune Steward and Salmon River Program is a cooperative effort of New York Sea Grant, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State Parks, and The Nature Conservancy.