Co-op Positions (January - June 2011)

$24.00 per hour

< return to Current Opportunities page 

All of these are full-time (40 hours a week) positions for students with junior or senior standing and graduate students. Students interested in applying for the following positions should submit a cover letter, resume, and unofficial transcript to Judy Rivers at Central Contra Costa Sanitary District, 5019 Imhoff Drive, Martinez, CA 94553 or e-mail to jrivers@centralsan.org.

Click here for the complete job description.

Engineering Department - Capital Projects Division

Duties/Assignments: These positions will be assigned to one or more project design/construction teams. As part of the design/construction team, duties will include determining and verifying field conditions, engineering calculations, data analysis, field surveying, researching and designing equipment and construction methods, writing project documents and memoranda, preparing design details for project drawings, and assisting construction management teams.

Collection System Program (2 positions) - Projects currently under design and construction involve replacement and rehabilitation of 18 miles of 6 to 96 inch sewer line and various improvements at pumping stations. The unmanned video inspection of 1,400 miles of sewer pipe and cathodic protection system are also in progress. These positions will be exposed to recent developments in trenchless technology such as microtunneling, cured-in-place lining, pipe bursting, and directional drilling.

Treatment Plant Program (1 position) - Projects currently underway include switchgear replacement, pipe rehabilitation, energy management, wet weather bypass, protective coatings, secondary process improvements, primary treatment renovations, safety enhancements, seismic rehabilitation, and heavy metals removal.

Preferred Qualifications: Seeking environmental, civil, chemical, sanitary, mechanical, or related engineering majors. Students should have knowledge of computer spreadsheet development, word processing, and basic chemistry. Internet skills are required. Should have ability to organize work assignments, learn to use packaged software, design and perform experiments, write clear, concise reports and memoranda, and may need to interpret construction drawings and system maps. Must possess a valid California Driver’s License and have a satisfactory driving history.

Engineering Department - Environmental Services Division

Duties/Assignments: The two Planning Section positions will be assigned to work on sewer system and treatment plant planning projects. These positions will perform engineering work in areas such as water recycling, treatment plant process evaluation and optimization, and collection systems studies, such as sewer expansion plans. Work may include facilities planning and preliminary design; pilot and bench scale studies; telephone, literature, and Internet research; report writing; and regulation tracking.

The position assigned to the Development Services and Right-of-Way Section will assist District engineers with reports, correspondence, legal research, and mapping. These services support design review and field inspection of private developments, obtaining or relinquishing easements, and adding property to the District.

Preferred Qualifications: Seeking environmental, civil, mechanical, chemical, or related engineering majors. Students should have knowledge of computer spreadsheet development, word processing, and basic chemistry. Internet skills are required. Should have ability to organize work assignments; learn to use packaged software; design and perform experiments; write clear, concise reports and memoranda, and may need to interpret construction drawings and system maps.  Must possess a valid California Driver’s License and have a satisfactory driving history.

Plant Operations Department - Operations Engineering (1 position)

Duties/Assignments: This position is assigned to the Plant Operations Department of a 54 million gallons per day water pollution control facility, and will report directly to a Senior Engineer or a Senior Process Control Engineer. This position will be assigned engineering projects to improve plant operational efficiency and/or evaluate performance of processes or equipment. The performance of these projects will enable the student engineer to get "hands on" experience while utilizing his/her engineering training. Additional responsibilities will include coordination with other engineering disciplines and contractors, and working closely with the plant operators. Typical projects might include control modification of process equipment, preparation of control panel and wiring diagrams, analyses of odor control systems, evaluation of chemicals and processes, monitoring process performance, and other short-term engineering projects.

Preferred Qualifications: Seeking chemical, civil, sanitary, mechanical, or related engineering majors. Students should have knowledge of thermodynamics, heat transfer, hydraulics, chemistry, and computer spreadsheet development. In addition, knowledge of instrumentation and controls helpful. Should have ability to organize work assignments; learn to use packaged software; and write clear, concise reports. Must possess a valid California Driver’s License and have a satisfactory driving history.

Plant Operations Department - Environmental Laboratory (1 position)

Duties/Assignments: This position will be assigned to perform chemical, physical, biological, and microbiological analyses of wastewater and its byproducts. Duties include sample collection and operating laboratory instruments and computers. Duties may require research and project management and development.  This position may also perform literature searches, compile scientific data, perform data analysis and reduction, write reports, and presentations.

Preferred Qualifications: Seeking students with chemistry, biochemistry, biology, microbiology, chemical, or environmental engineering major. Must have laboratory experience. Must possess a valid California Driver’s License and have a satisfactory driving history.