Western Region Water Quality Intern
Internship Overview:
MountainTrue’s Western Regional Office is located in Murphy, NC, serving seven counties in Southwestern North Carolina and two counties in North Georgia. This paid internship is within MountainTrue’s Clean Water program and is part-time for a total of 150 hours. The intern must live within 50 miles of Murphy, NC, as the majority of the work will be within that radius. However, the work schedule within the week is somewhat flexible.
Position Description:
The intern’s primary responsibilities will be to assist with collection and analysis of weekly E.coli samples for our Swim Guide monitoring program and to manage the microplastics sampling program in the Hiwassee River basin. This work involves traveling around a four-county area, collecting water quality samples, interacting with volunteers, and conducting lab analyses.
Another major focus of the internship is to assist with distribution of supplies and certification workshops for the long-established volunteer water quality monitoring program in the Hiwassee River watershed (Cherokee & Clay counties in NC and Towns & Union counties in GA). And planning a summertime social event for all water program volunteers.
Other responsibilities may include sampling natural drinking water sources and helping with educational events related to water quality in rivers, lakes, and streams.
Eligibility:
- Must have completed your junior year of high school (at minimum).
- Must have independent, reliable transportation, valid driver’s license, and be willing/able to travel alone within a 50-mile radius of Murphy
- Must be committed to completing the whole internship (150 hours)
- Should be considering a career in one of the fields listed on our scholarship webpage
Desired skills:
- Organized, with a high level of attention to detail
- Experience working with volunteers, or as a volunteer
- Ideally some background in water quality monitoring, but not required
Application deadline: March 30, 2024
Start date: May 21, 2024
End date: Early August 2024
Work schedule: Internship is approximately 12.5 hours/week for 12 weeks. Tuesday-Thursday are the preferred days of the work week, but the intern will often be working independently and some work can be done remotely.
Location: The intern must live within a 50-mile radius of Murphy, NC.
Compensation: The WRO intern will receive a taxable stipend of $1,500, and mileage will be reimbursed at $0.67 per mile.
Including a resume is optional. Apply through this form.