Department: Department of the Interior
Location(s): Alturas, California, Redding, California
Salary Range: $62570 - $94687 Per Year
Job Summary: This is a Direct-Hire advertisement. Veterans preference is not applicable to this advertisement. Learn more about this authority at: Direct Hire Authority This Wildland Firefighter (Fuels) position is with the US Wildland Fire Service, GW-0456-7/8/9 working in the following location(s): Alturas, California Redding, California In order to be considered for any duty location, ensure desired locations are selected. Applicants will not be considered for locations not selected.
Major Duties:
Qualifications: In order to qualify for this position you must possess the Minimum Qualification requirements listed below. Selective Placement Factor(s): This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. Those who do not provide evidence they possess the following selective factor(s) will be rated not qualified. Prior on-the-line firefighting: This experience must be clearly documented in your resume with specific to and from dates, description of work performed, and hours worked per week in order to be considered. This is an administrative position in an organization having a firefighting mission and is in an established career path. Prior firefighting experience, as gained by substantial service in a primary firefighter position or equivalent experience outside the Federal Government is a MANDATORY PREREQUISITE for incumbents of this position. Candidates must possess substantial wildland firefighting experience, gained through fire line work in containment, control, suppression or use of wildland fire. Substantial experience is considered one fire season, which is typically 90 days in duration. The Department of the Interior defines wildland firefighting experience as any non-structure fire that occurs in the wildland. Wildland firefighting experience is gained through work on the fire line in containment, control, suppression or use of wildland fire. This experience can be met by serving in a temporary, seasonal, or equivalent private sector fire position. Wildland fires are categorized into two distinct types: (1) Wildfires - Unplanned ignitions or prescribed fires that are declared wildfires; and (2) Prescribed Fires - Planned ignitions. This description includes only fireline experience on a Prescribed Fire; it does not include experience in the planning stages. Prescribed fire experience must be supplemented by fire suppression experience in order to be creditable as previous wildland firefighting experience. In addition to the requirements described above, the following additional experience is required. Only experience obtained by 05/05/2026 will be considered. Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. Please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience. Minimum Qualification For the GW-07 level: 1 year (12 months) of specialized experience equivalent to GW-06 is required. Examples of work experience include but are not limited to: forestry technician work; forest or range fire control, prevention or suppression work; reviewing, preparing, administering a prescribed fire/fuels plan, mechanical fuels treatments, smoke and wildland fire monitoring; preparing field surveys or study plots; conducting field reconnaissance of prescribed fire/fuels treatments and recommending prescriptive criteria to meet program objectives; identifies training needs to support prescribed fire and fuels management programs. For the GW-08 level: 1 year (12 months) of specialized experience equivalent to GW-07 is required. Examples of work experience include but are not limited to: assisting preparation and implementation of prescribed fire plans; assisting evaluating treatments, monitoring methods and new technologies; assisting with conducting fuels management surveys to document types of hazardous fuels. For the GW-09 level: 1 year (12 months) of specialized experience equivalent to GS-08 is required. Examples of work experience include, but are not limited to: preparing and implementing prescribed fire plans; evaluating prescription of treatments, monitoring methods and new technologies; conducting fuels management surveys to document types of hazardous fuels. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. *Applicants must meet all minimum qualification requirements for the position of interest by the closing date of the Job Announcement. Secondary Firefighter Retirement Coverage - Applicants for this secondary administrative fire fighter position under the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412 (d), must possess knowledge of the principles, methods, and techniques of wildland firefighting as demonstrated by direct wildland firefighting experience. In order to receive credit, you must provide a written description of your experience in wildland firefighting. Education without hands-on wildland firefighting experience does not meet this requirement. Periods of wildland firefighting experience, gained through militia and rural fire departments, can also be credited. Wildland fire is defined as any non-structure fire that occurs in the wildland. Two distinct types of wildland fire have been defined and include wildfire and prescribed fires as follows: Wildfire: Unplanned ignitions or prescribed fires that are declared wildfires. Prescribed Fires: Planned ignitions. This description includes only fire line experience on a Prescribed Fire; it does not include experience in the planning stages. Prescribed fire experience must be supplemented by fire suppression experience in order to be creditable as previous wildland firefighting experience. Physical Demands: Work in the office is primarily sedentary. Field work does require frequent physical exertion, involving walking over rough terrain, sometimes for extended periods, and working under occasionally inclement (hot, cold, snow, wind, etc.) weather conditions. The incumbent must be in good physical condition in order to safety perform field activities. The incumbent must be able to perform duties in areas of uncontrolled wildfire where hazardous conditions exist. The incumbent must be able to fly as a passenger in helicopters and single engine fixed wing aircraft. Working Conditions: Work is performed in both an office and field setting with field work. Field work involves exposure to temperature extremes, both from weather and fire conditions where falling trees and the presence of smoke and/or dust conditions create hazardous conditions. The nature of fire management work requires that protective clothing (boots, hard hats, etc.) be worn. The incumbent must exercise a variety of safety practices and precautions for the well-being of self and of others.
How to Apply: Review the appointment eligibility criteria in the application preview linked below. The eligibility section of the application allows you to choose how you wish to be considered for this vacancy announcement. You will ONLY be considered for the eligibilities that you select "yes" to and submit the required supporting documentation, as listed in the Required Documents section or the application text. You may qualify for more than one eligibility, so please choose carefully. If you respond that you do not meet any of the eligibility criteria, you will not be considered for this position under this announcement. To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package. See required documents section. Click 'Apply' to create an account or log in to your existing USAJOBS account. Follow the prompts to complete the assessment questionnaire and upload required documents. To preview the assessment questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12934794. Please ensure you check the acknowledgement checkbox then click the Submit Application button to submit your application. Applications must be received by 05/05/2026, 11:59pm ET to receive consideration. Check application status by logging into your USAJOBS account, in Applications tab, click the position title you applied to for the status. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/. If you are unable to apply online, you must request an alternative application which is available from the Human Resources Office. Please refer to the contact information listed at the bottom of the announcement. Applicants who apply under this job opportunity announcement agree to have their application, associated documents and applicable personal information shared with other Bureaus/Offices within the Department of the Interior (DOI) who have vacancies within the same occupational series, grade, full performance level and in the same geographic location(s), including within the same metro/commuting area. Applying to this announcement does not replace the need to apply to other job opportunity announcements for which you wish to receive consideration.
Application Deadline: 2026-05-05