Lead Environmental Engineer (retainer position)

Contract

This is a LICA Specialist-10 contract. This kind of contract is known as Local Individual Contractor Agreements. It is normally only for nationals. It's an external contract. It usually requires 5 years of experience, depending on education. More about LICA Specialist-10 contracts.

Background Information - Job-specific

The Multi-Partner Environmental Fund (MPEF) Clean up of OHIS Site

The Republic of North Macedonia has similar problems in the management of the environment to countries of the Eastern Europe, which include at least 16 industrial hotspots, threatening public health and with wider environmental implications.

Chemical plant OHIS, situated seven kilometers from the North Macedonia capital - Skopje, in less than five kilometer proximity of 500,000 inhabitants, was one of Macedonia's largest industrial producers manufacturing a range of chemical products and employing around 3,900 workers. According to the UNEP August 2001 ‘Feasibility Study for Urgent Risk Reduction Measures at Hot Spots in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’ at least four locations at the chemical complex pose unacceptable risks to human health and require urgent environmental clean-up.

While aiming to speed up addressing the issue of remediation of the hazardous waste from the OHIS site, the Government supported the establishment of a Multi-Partner Environmental Fund (MPEF) managed by UNOPS.

The MPEF provides a platform for the coordinated channeling of financial and technical support through a joint approach, based on broad national and international participation; The MPEF is a systematic mechanism to clean up industrial pollution at former OHIS site in line with the European standards. It will strengthen coordination between all stakeholders, national and international, and better align overall bilateral and multilateral assistance with nationally defined needs and priorities.

Background Information – relevant for the assignment

The Multi-Partner Environmental Fund (MPEF) is established to support the efforts of the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia to remedy the most critical environmental hotspot in the country - chemical plant OHIS. The MPEF will through enhanced coordination of the line institutions and donor community, serve as financial and management instrument for clean-up activities at OHIS site.

Activities will be supported by two UNOPS managed projects titled:

The Multi-Partner Environmental Fund (MPEF) Clean-up of Ohis Site, whose objective is to contribute to greater resilience to environmental risks and reduced hazards to human health in North Macedonia by remediating industrial pollution at the former OHIS site in line with the European standards; and,

Nordic Support for Progress of North Macedonia, in particular Result 2 of the project, which is Enhanced Social Inclusion; Living Conditions and Local Infrastructure improved; Activity 2.4 Clean-up of toxic waste from OHIS factory - setting-up of a multi-partner environmental fund.

The actual cleaning activities will include removal of waste and overlying contaminated soil and destruction by thermal decomposition (i.e. incineration at a licensed facility abroad) was selected as the preferred technology for the remediation of the delta HCH contaminated site.

Functional Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Project Management Support Advisor, the Lead Environmental Engineer will provide technical advice to the project, to ensure that project activities related to selection of the service providers for the Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) contaminated site remediation result in development of comprehensive ToR that will encompass all needed aspects for proper selection process (scope of the requested services, requirements of the technology taking into consideration applicability for treatment of the HCH and ability to treat wider spectrum of waste fractions, e.g. mercury, relevance to the country strategy, technical, environmental and economic criteria) that will enable the most competent, capable, experienced, reliable and competitive service provider to be selected.

Once the service provider is selected the Lead Environmental Engineer will continue to provide technical advice during the execution of the clean-up operation. Expert opinion and advice will be given on systems set-up to monitor, supervise and evaluate the performances of the service provider in every phase of the delta HCH dump clean-up activities.

Responsibilities/ activities

• Revision of the ToR for the selection of the service provider for the remediation of the HCH contaminated site, including:

- Summary of the site characterization/investigation results;

- Summary of the risk assessment analysis;

- Definition of the remediation, i.e. the target clean-up values based on the national legislation and the future land use;

• Review the scope of work and duration of the requested activities;

- Technology performance requirements taking into consideration applicability for the treatment of the HCH and ability to treat wider spectrum of waste fractions, e.g. mercury, relevance to the country strategy, existing and planned programmes, then the Best Available Techniques(BAT) and Best Environmental Practices (BEP) standards;

• Review formal, qualification requirements and general parts of the tender package and provide recommendations for improvement if needed;
• Act as a technical specialist in the evaluation of received bids/proposals for the tender, and asses the proposals against the specification requirements:

- Content of the technical proposal;

- Guarantee requirements;

- Payment schedule;

- Monitoring and reporting;

- Costs breakdown of the foreseen expenditures;

- Development of technology selection screening matrix with specific evaluation criteria and the corresponding weighting factors for each criteria.

• Perform inspection visits to the delivery and installation location as and when necessary;

• Review of all obtained environmental permits issued by competent authorities

• Provide support to UNOPS procurement officials in quality assurance during or upon the delivery of the goods, works and services.

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education

• Advanced university degree preferably in Chemical Science/Engineering/Environmental Management and other relevant disciplines.

• Bachelor degree with a combination of two additional years of relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the Advanced University Degree.

  Work Experience

• At least five years of professional experience in the dealing with remedial actions related to contaminated sites, including development of contaminated site remediation plans and/or supervision/monitoring of the site remediation process and/or packing, loading and transport of toxic waste is required;
• Knowledge of international/national contaminated site legislation and management practices is an advantage;
• Knowledge in classification of different wastes in accordance with European Waste Catalog (EWC) is an advantage;
• Experience in preparation/review of documentation needed for issuing Notifications and Export Permits for transboundary movement of waste is an asset;
• Experience in working with national institutions, CSO and international organisations, donor activities in the sector of environment in the Western Balkans countries and the EU funds would be an advantage.

Language Requirements - Fluency in English and Macedonian (speaking, reading and writing) is required. - Knowledge of Albanian is an asset.

ALL CANDIDATES ARE REQUESTED TO SUBMIT A CV AND COVER LETTER WITH THEIR APPLICATION.

Competencies

Develops and implements sustainable business strategies, thinks long term and externally in order to positively shape the organization. Anticipates and perceives the impact and implications of future decisions and activities on other parts of the organization.(for levels IICA-2, IICA-3, LICA Specialist- 10, LICA Specialist-11, NOC, NOD, P3, P4 and above) Treats all individuals with respect; responds sensitively to differences and encourages others to do the same. Upholds organizational and ethical norms. Maintains high standards of trustworthiness. Role model for diversity and inclusion.

Acts as a positive role model contributing to the team spirit. Collaborates and supports the development of others. For people managers only: Acts as positive leadership role model, motivates, directs and inspires others to succeed, utilizing appropriate leadership styles. Demonstrates understanding of the impact of own role on all partners and always puts the end beneficiary first. Builds and maintains strong external relationships and is a competent partner for others (if relevant to the role). Efficiently establishes an appropriate course of action for self and/or others to accomplish a goal. Actions lead to total task accomplishment through concern for quality in all areas. Sees opportunities and takes the initiative to act on them. Understands that responsible use of resources maximizes our impact on our beneficiaries. Open to change and flexible in a fast paced environment. Effectively adapts own approach to suit changing circumstances or requirements. Reflects on experiences and modifies own behavior. Performance is consistent, even under pressure. Always pursues continuous improvements. Evaluates data and courses of action to reach logical, pragmatic decisions. Takes an unbiased, rational approach with calculated risks. Applies innovation and creativity to problem-solving. Expresses ideas or facts in a clear, concise and open manner. Communication indicates a consideration for the feelings and needs of others. Actively listens and proactively shares knowledge. Handles conflict effectively, by overcoming differences of opinion and finding common ground.

Contract type, level and duration

This is a local position, it is therefore open to Nationals of the Republic of North Macedonia and to individuals who have a valid residence/work permit.

Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA) - Retainer position Contract level: Local ICA 10 Contract duration: Up to 50 working days, in period of 12 months

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link: https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

Additional Considerations

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns. Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

Background Information - UNOPS

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.

Background information – UNOPS Serbia

The UNOPS Republic of Serbia Multi Country Office (RSMCO) is implementing 13 projects in Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Ukraine.

In Serbia, where UNOPS has been active since 2000, and North Macedonia and Montenegro where UNOPS works since 2017, the organisation provides support in demanding socio-economic reforms and facilitating accession to the European Union. The projects focus on sustainable socio-economic development, good governance, social cohesion, environment and emergency response. The projects are implemented with the funding from the European Union (EU), Kingdom of Norway, Governments of Switzerland, Sweden and North Macedonia.

In Ukraine, UNOPS support to the partners in their reform agenda since 2016 spans the rule of law, social protection, demining, emergency response and security. The projects are funded by the EU, UNHCR, the Governments of Japan and Canada.

All projects have gender equality as a transversal theme, and have been contextualised within the broader Sustainable Development Goals frameworks and objectives.