Department: Air Quality & Climate Action
Employee Group: Teamsters Local 31
Location: 4515 Central Boulevard, Burnaby
Salary Range/ Wage Rate: PG T22 $2,837.65 - $3,340.08 bi-weekly (2024 wage rates)

Our Air Quality & Climate Action Department is seeking an Ambient Air Technician who will work with a dedicated team to perform a critical role supporting the operation and maintenance of air quality monitoring instruments and equipment throughout Metro Vancouver’s comprehensive network of air quality monitoring stations. This will involve routine service, preventative maintenance, quality control checks, instrument calibration, and troubleshooting, according to applicable operating procedures, and maintaining detailed records of the work. This position also involves reviewing and assessing air quality and meteorological data collected from network stations and specialized air monitoring studies to ensure high standards for data quality are achieved.

You are: A strong team player having hands-on experience with air pollution or other monitoring equipment, and technical training. You can effectively multi-task and adapt in a fast-paced environment and enjoy working independently in the field.

This role:

• Visits air monitoring stations at various locations within an assigned area on a regular and scheduled basis, performs routine checks, cleaning, maintenance and secondary calibration of specialized air pollution monitoring equipment to ensure high quality of incoming air monitoring data, and keeps a superior informed of unusual, complex or recurring problems.
• Examines defective instruments at the stations, performs routine tests using pre-calibrated gas cylinders, checks electrical and mechanical connections and hookups, carries out routine mechanical repairs, such as replacing faulty tubing and informs Instrument Technicians of equipment repair problems.
• Performs routine servicing and maintenance tasks on the particulate monitoring network, such as changing the sampler filters, to ensure accurate measurement of suspended particles.
• Installs equipment exclusive of telemetry units at the monitoring stations for both gaseous and particulate measurement, removes equipment when obviously malfunctioning or as directed by Instrument Technicians and investigates questionable data from either network by checking equipment operation.
• Monitors and verifies computerized data covering daily instrument monitoring, remote instrument calibration, and air quality index calculations to ensure accuracy of data, deletes invalid data and resolves equipment malfunction problems or refers problem to a superior as appropriate; examines sampler charts and prepares filter samples for analysis by the laboratory.
• Maintains records of all field operational and maintenance duties performed, enters air data into a computer system as required, retrieves automatically-recorded computer data for verification and filing, compiles, summarizes and verifies monthly and annual air monitoring data in reports for a superior's review.
• Performs other related work as required.

To be successful, you have:

• Completion of a recognized two year diploma course from an Institute of Technology in Chemical Technology preferably with the Pollution Control/Environmental option or in Instrumentation Technology and some related experience or an equivalent combination of training and experience.
• Considerable knowledge of the servicing and routine adjustment of specialized air monitoring instruments and equipment.
• Considerable knowledge of the practices, methods and procedures of installing, maintaining, performing secondary calibrations and limited repairs to specialized air monitoring instruments and equipment.
• Sound knowledge of the practices, methods and procedures of data review and verification, compiling and summarizing relating to the work performed.
• Working knowledge of Regional District geography as applicable to station siting and operations.
• Some knowledge of the characteristics and capabilities of the ambient air computer system as applicable to the work performed and the basic operating and maintenance procedures for same.
• Some knowledge of the Environmental Management Act, Clean Air Act and other related applicable legislation.
• Ability to install, check, clean, maintain, perform secondary calibration on and remove, as required, specialized air monitoring instruments and equipment.
• Ability to examine and to carry out routine mechanical repairs of defective instruments in the field, and to refer complex malfunctions to Instrument Technicians or to a superior.
• Ability to identify and investigate questionable data, to monitor and verify computerized air data, keeping a superior informed of problems, to enter and retrieve data using a computer system and to prepare and maintain related work records and reports.
• Ability to understand basic principles behind the operation of air monitoring equipment.
• Ability to understand and follow instructions and to learn about new air monitoring instruments.
• Ability to drive a light vehicle, to lift and move equipment in cramped quarters, to work effectively on top of stations or on roofs and in all types of weather.
• Ability to work independently with a minimum of supervision within a prescribed program of maintenance, calibration and report preparation.
• Skill in the calibration and use of ambient air monitoring equipment.
• Valid British Columbia Driver's Licence.