Basic Function:

The successful Soil Monitoring Technologist will be central in the performing the following functions:

• Co-ordinate and manage operational ground surveys such as Signpost Farms for deep soil carbon analysis and other soil monitoring work at Teagasc; including spatial analysis, field survey, soil sampling, collection of farm management data and lab analysis.
• Establish and maintain soil monitoring and spatial data from the Teagasc Signpost Programme and other associated soil health and soil monitoring related projects at Teagasc.
• Facilitate and Support the sharing of data to internal and external users.

Background:

Teagasc is expanding its research and KT programme to rapidly advance the science and implementation of current and new measures to meet the biodiversity and climate challenges that farmers are facing. Understanding soil carbon sequestration in Irish agricultural systems will be essential for meeting sector climate targets. The successful candidate will be part of the Environment Soils and Land-Use Department based in Johnstown Castle (or other Teagasc centre by agreement) and work in an interdisciplinary and collaborative manner with the research programme.

Teagasc Signpost Programme

The Teagasc Signpost Programme is a national initiative in Ireland aimed at promoting climate-smart farming practices. Launched by Teagasc, the programme supports farmers in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving water quality, and enhancing biodiversity. Central to this is a network of Signpost Farms, which act as demonstration sites for sustainable technologies and practices. These farms showcase real-life implementation of mitigation strategies, offering guidance and data to inform best practices across the agricultural sector.

Teagasc Signpost Soil Carbon Project

A key component of the programme is its focus on soil carbon sequestration. Recognising the vital role soils play in storing carbon, the programme supports research and measurement of soil organic carbon levels. This involves soil sampling, including periodic resampling to assess changes in carbon stocks over time, as well as modelling to track long-term trends in soil carbon sequestration.

The soil carbon work is closely tied to the broader climate goals of Ireland’s agri-food sector. It provides essential data for national greenhouse gas inventories and contributes to the development of more accurate emissions accounting methods, ultimately supporting Ireland’s transition to a low-emissions agricultural system. This competition seeks to recruit a permanent data technologist who will lead the ground survey and manage a database for the Teagasc Signpost soil carbon work and other soil monitoring projects at Teagasc

The proposed EU Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive aims to ensure healthy soils across Europe by 2050 through a comprehensive monitoring framework and sustainable management practices. Member States are required to monitor and assess soil health within their territories, utilizing a common EU methodology The successful candidate will contribute their skills and expertise to projects related to soil monitoring that may inform national and EU policies on soils.

The successful candidate will be based at the Environment, Soils and Land-Use Department at Johnstown Castle. We lead Ireland’s soils and environment related research and conduct research on a wide range of subjects, e.g. soil carbon, soil health, carbon farming, gaseous emissions, nutrient efficiency, water quality, farmland biodiversity.

In support of their career development the successful candidate will have access to a wide range of training opportunities and will be fully supported to integrate with ongoing relevant research and develop a national and international network of collaborators.

• To manage data collection and curation from fields and farms across the participating farmers as part of the Signpost Programme and other soil health monitoring projects in Teagasc.
• Co-ordinate the ground survey and sampling campaigns required for data acquisition on Teagasc Signpost soil carbon work and other soil health related projects.
• Establish and manage associated databases, and link to national and international data repositories.
• Lead the development, operation and analysis of a national soil archive and farm management activity databases. This includes archiving of data, quality control of data, and preliminary statistical analyses.
• Assess and employ new innovative methods and technologies to enhance the processing and collection of soil.
• Use Geographic Information Systems (GIS) tools, such as QGIS and ArcGIS, to support spatial planning of soil sampling, assist with mapping, and contribute to the visual presentation of soil data for project reporting and communication.
• Conduct soil classification and field-based soil surveys with Teagasc experts using the Irish Soil Information System and the World Reference Base (WRB) for Soil Resources to support, soil management recommendations, and ongoing research activities.Manage the soil archives and storage of nationally representative soil types at Teagasc facilities.
• Contribute to and produce high quality technical papers on carbon sequestration in Irish soils.
• Facilitating archive access, data sharing agreements and the compilation and extraction of data for data requests.
• Data quality control checks on the data and reporting of outliers.
• Support to researchers accessing the data.
• Support the Signpost Programme and other Teagasc projects in communicating results and key findings to farmers, and assist with dissemination activities such as creating reports, visuals, presentations, workshops and open-days.
• To establish strong collaborative links within Teagasc and national/international researchers.
• Work closely with Teagasc Knowledge Transfer Specialists/Advisors to ensure effective dissemination of research findings to advisers and stakeholders.
• Co-supervise, in conjunction with University partners, postgraduate students to Masters and PhD level.
• To assist Teagasc in meeting the commitments of the Quality Customer Service Charter and Action Plan.
• To actively participate in the annual business planning and Performance Management Development System (PMDS) processes.
• Fully co-operate with the provisions made for ensuring the health, safety and welfare of themselves, fellow staff and non-Teagasc staff and co-operate with management in enabling Teagasc to comply with legal obligations. This includes full compliance with the responsibilities outlined in the Safety Statement.
• Any other duties as may be assigned from time to time.

* This job specification is intended as a guide to the general range of duties and is intended to be neither definitive nor restrictive.  It will be reviewed from time to time with the post holder.

 Note:  The ‘essential’ qualifications, knowledge, skills and behavioural competencies outlined above are ‘must-have’ which will be used in the selection process.

Note:  Alternative location(s) may be considered solely at the discretion of Teagasc management.