VACANCY OUTREACH NOTICE
Forest Service Pacific Region 6
Colville National Forest
GS-0462-5/6/7 Initial Attack Dispatcher
Northeast Washington Interagency
Communications Center (NEWICC)
Colville, WA
The Colville National Forest is planning to fill an IA Dispatcher in the Northeast Washington Interagency
Communications Center this coming January. The Forest shares the interagency dispatch center with the
Department of Interior and the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Fire resources often
work with their peers from these other agencies during wildland and prescribed fire activities and place a high
value on relationships - with each other, sister agencies, and local communities.
Major Duties: This position is the only federal Initial Attack Dispatcher located within the Northeast
Washington Interagency Communications Center. The IA Dispatcher provides communications for field
personnel and for fire suppression and prescribed burning activities. Additionally, this position is expected to
document communications within WildCAD and maintain dispatch logs and process fire reports. This position
must be able to monitor multiple frequencies, communicate fire report information and send closest response to
fires regardless of agency or jurisdiction. They must be familiar with the geography of NE Washington and be
able to effectively communicate information readily over the radio or via phone.
Please use the attached outreach response form if you have an interest in this position and would like to receive
status updates regarding the vacancy announcement.
For more information on this vacancy, contact the following:
Leon W. Mitchell, Colville National Forest Assistant Fire Management Officer, at (509) 684-7223 or by email
at lwmitchell@fs.fed.us.
You can also contact the Dispatch Center Manager, Rette Bidstrup, at 509-685-6900 or by email at
rette.bidstrup@dnr.wa.gov or Tim Sampson, Forest Fire Management Officer, at (509) 684-7222 or by email at
tsampson@fs.fed.us.
When the vacancy is advertised, you must apply through USAJobs to one or both of the following vacancy
announcements:
Merit: OCR14-462-IADISP-5/6/7G
Demo: OCR14-462-IADISP-5/6/7DP
A referral list will be requested on or after January 16, 2014.
For IA Dispatcher positions, the implementation of FS-FPM Standard occurred on October 1, 2008 and
incumbents must have attained full Minimum Qualification Standards.
Initial Attack
IFPM
Category
Initial Attack
Dispatcher
(IADP)
Dispatch
Positions1
Recommended
Min Grade,
Series, PD
Lead IA
Dispatcher
GS-0462-07
FS0900
IA
Dispatcher
GS-0462-06
FS0937
IA
Dispatcher
GS-0462-05
FS0936
Series
Forestry
Technician
(462)
Selective Placement Factors2
Primary Core Secondary Core
Requirement Requirement
EDRC
(Currency not
required)
90 days of Wildland
Firefighting operations
experience
Additional
Req.
Training
N/A
IA Dispatcher positions may be advertised as multi-grade GS-5/6/7 positions. IFPM Selective Factors apply to
all grade levels. If an applicant is selected as a GS-5/6/7 with non-competitive promotion potential to the GS- 6
or higher grade levels, then they are required to possess the full Selective Placement Factors at time of hire.
About the Colville National Forest
Tucked into the northeastern corner of Washington State and nestled at the foot of the northern Rockies, the
Colville National Forest (and the portions of the Kaniksu National Forest administered by the Colville) is an
exquisite landscape of forested mountains, clear mountain streams and fertile valleys. The 1.1 million acre
forest was shaped over 10,000 years ago by Ice Age glaciers that carved three major valleys: the Columbia,
Sanpoil-Curlew, and Pend Oreille (pond-o-ray) River valleys. The mountains and valleys that comprise the lush
northeast corner of Washington roll like waves on the high seas. Three waves of mountains run from north to
south, separated by troughs of beautiful valleys. These ranges, the Okanogan, Kettle River and Selkirk are
considered the eastern edge of the Okanagan highlands and the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
The Forest has three Ranger Districts: Three Rivers Ranger District, Newport and Sullivan Lake Ranger District
and the Republic Ranger District. Each unit tends to have distinctly different zones, each with its unique
climate, topography, and vegetation. Each district office is located in one of the major river drainages: the
Sanpoil-Curlew River Valleys, the Kettle-Colville-Columbia River Valleys, and the Pend Oreille River Valley.
Topography is varied, ranging from rounded mountain slopes at low elevations to high peaks and basins above
7,300 feet in elevation.
The ecology of the Colville is highly diverse with forests ranging from ponderosa pine and Douglas fir on drier
sites to western red cedar, western hemlock, western white pine and a variety of deciduous species on wetter
sites. The Forest also has a significant acreage of lodgepole pine and the famously beautiful western larch. The
Forest is also home to a tremendous variety of wildlife including whitetail and mule deer, elk, moose, bighorn
sheep, mountain goats, and black bear. Rare sightings are also possible of the threatened grizzly, Canada lynx,
and endangered woodland caribou.
For more information on the Colville, Washington area, go to http://colville.com
OUTREACH RESPONSE FORM
Please respond to this outreach no later than December 21st, 2013
If you are interested in applying for this position, and want to receive updates of the position’s status,
please complete the outreach form and send via:
E-mail lwmitchell@fs.fed.us or
Fax to 509-684-7280 or
Mail to the Colville National Forest, Attn: Leon W. Mitchell, 695 S. Main Colville, WA 99114
I am interested in the following position:
Position Title/Region/Forest:
IA Dispatcher, NEWICC/Region 6/Colville National Forest
Name:
Address:
e-Mail Address:
Phone:
If current federal employee:
Current title/series/grade:
Current agency and location:
Type of Appointment:
Permanent
Term
Temporary
If not a current permanent employee are you eligible for appointment under any of the following
special authorities?
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Persons with Disabilities ____
Former Peace Corps Volunteer ____
Public Lands Corps Program ____
Pathways Internship Program ____
Recent Graduates Program ____
Veterans Recruitment Act ____
Disabled Veteran (30% Compensable) ____
Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1988 ____
Source you received this outreach letter from: ______________________________________