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The Ocean Cleanup Jobs in Virginia (NOW HIRING)

The Ocean Cleanup information

See Virginia salary details

$28.8K

$214.1K

$396.6K

How much do the ocean cleanup jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 23, 2026, the average yearly pay for the ocean cleanup in Virginia is $214,147.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $31,700.00 and $396,600.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is The Ocean Cleanup?

The Ocean Cleanup is a non-profit organization dedicated to developing advanced technologies to rid the world's oceans of plastic pollution. Founded in 2013 by Boyan Slat, the organization focuses on both cleaning up existing plastic in oceans, especially in areas like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, and preventing plastic from entering the ocean through river interception systems. Their innovative solutions include large floating barriers and river cleanup devices called Interceptors. The Ocean Cleanup combines science, engineering, and field operations to address the global plastic pollution crisis.

What skills and qualifications are needed to work at The Ocean Cleanup?

To thrive at The Ocean Cleanup, you generally need a background in environmental science, engineering, or marine technology, often supported by relevant degrees or experience in sustainability initiatives. Familiarity with data analysis tools, CAD software, and project management systems is commonly required, along with certifications in safety or environmental management for certain roles. Creativity, strong teamwork, and effective communication are essential soft skills for collaborating on innovative solutions in diverse, multidisciplinary teams. These skills ensure the successful design, deployment, and operation of technologies that address complex environmental challenges in marine environments.

What challenges do team members face at The Ocean Cleanup, and how is collaboration structured?

Team members at The Ocean Cleanup often face challenges such as working in remote, marine environments and adapting to rapidly changing weather and ocean conditions. The organization fosters a multidisciplinary, collaborative environment where engineers, scientists, and operational staff frequently coordinate efforts, both on-site and remotely, to overcome logistical and technical obstacles. Regular cross-functional meetings and clear communication channels ensure that expertise is shared and innovative solutions are developed quickly. This collaborative culture not only helps address operational challenges but also provides team members with broad opportunities for professional growth and learning.

What is the difference between The Ocean Cleanup vs Marine Conservation Technician?

AspectThe Ocean CleanupMarine Conservation Technician
Required CredentialsEnvironmental science, engineering, or related fields; technical skillsMarine biology, environmental science; certifications in conservation or diving often preferred
Work EnvironmentField projects at sea, research centers, environmental organizationsMarine habitats, conservation sites, research facilities
Employer & IndustryEnvironmental NGOs, research institutes, tech companies focused on ocean cleanupEnvironmental NGOs, government agencies, research institutions

Both roles focus on ocean health but differ in scope. The Ocean Cleanup specializes in developing and deploying technology to remove plastic from oceans, requiring engineering and technical skills. Marine Conservation Technicians work directly in marine environments, focusing on habitat preservation and species protection, often with biological expertise. Understanding these differences helps job seekers align their skills and interests with the right role in ocean conservation.

How do I get involved in The Ocean Cleanup?

To get involved with The Ocean Cleanup as a job seeker, visit their careers page to explore current openings and application procedures. Relevant skills include environmental science, engineering, or project management, and a commitment to sustainability is important. Volunteering or internships may also be available for those interested in supporting their mission.

What are popular job titles related to The Ocean Cleanup jobs in Virginia?

For The Ocean Cleanup jobs in Virginia, the most frequently searched job titles are:

What cities in Virginia are hiring for The Ocean Cleanup jobs?

Cities in Virginia with the most The Ocean Cleanup job openings:

Infographic showing various The Ocean Cleanup job openings in Virginia as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 71% Full Time, 16% Part Time, and 13% Contract. Highlights an 97% Physical, 1% Hybrid, and 2% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $214,147 per year, or $103 per hour.

DevOps Engineer/ Principal DevOps Engineer (AHT)

Northrop Grumman Corporation

Fairfax, VA • On-site

$54 - $73.75/hr

Full-time

Medical, Life, PTO

Posted 12 days ago


Northrop Grumman rating

8.2

Company rating: 8.2 out of 10

Based on 364 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

85th of 544 rated manufacturers


Job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be availableCLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: YesCLEARANCE TYPE: Top SecretTRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the TimeDescriptionAt Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work - and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman's Space Sector is seeking a DevOps Engineer - Level 2 or Level 3 to join our team in Aurora, CO to support on-premises mission systems by operating, maintaining, and incrementally enhancing existing DevOps and platform solutions. The engineer will work within established architectures and standards rather than designing new solutions, focusing on reliability, security, and continuous improvement of current environments. The position can be based in Fairfax, VA.

In this job, you will:

  • Operate and maintain existing GitLab CI/CD infrastructure including patching and permissions. Advise on updates to jobs, runners, variables, and approvals to improve stability and throughput.

  • Administer Nexus artifact repositories including patching, backups, access management, repository configuration, cleanup/retention policies, and routine health checks.

  • Maintain Apache NiFi infrastructure including patching, troubleshooting, performance tuning, and implementing changes defined by senior engineers.

  • Support installation and day-to-day operations of Kubernetes on-prem clusters, including patching, storage management, deployments, rollouts/rollbacks, configuration updates, and resource adjustments.

  • Maintain and extend monitoring and alerting using Grafana and Prometheus for on-prem infrastructure and applications, including patching, access control, refining dashboards, alert rules, and service onboarding within existing observability patterns.

  • Implement incremental improvements to existing DevOps tooling and workflows (e.g., adding tests, improving pipeline stages, automating manual steps) consistent with established designs and security baselines.

  • Perform routine incident response and problem resolution for build, deployment, and runtime issues across CI/CD, Kubernetes, Nexus, NiFi, and supporting services.

  • Apply existing security and compliance controls across the DevOps toolchain: secrets management, access controls, certificate and credential rotation, image scanning, and log retention in accordance with program requirements.

  • Follow formal change management processes, including documenting changes, participating in reviews, and updating runbooks, SOPs, and technical documentation.

  • Collaborate with senior engineers, system administrators, and developers to implement improvements and operational changes defined by leads and architects.

  • Other duties as assigned

This position can be staffed at a level 2 or 3 based on the basic qualifications below.

Basic Qualifications:

  • Level 2: Bachelor's in STEM degree with 2 years of professional experience; Master's in STEM degree with 0 years of professional experience. Will consider an additional 4+ years of experience in lieu of degree.

  • Level 3: Bachelor's in STEM degree with 5 years of professional experience; Master's in STEM degree with 3 years of professional experience; PhD with 0 years of experience. Will consider an additional 4+ years of experience in lieu of degree.

  • Requires an active Top-Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) clearance at time of application

  • Must have the ability to obtain and maintain U.S. Government Full Scope Polygraph.

  • Relevant DevOps, site reliability, or systems engineering experience.

  • Demonstrated experience maintaining GitLab CI/CD in an on-prem environment

  • Practical experience administering Nexus repositories

  • Experience supporting Apache NiFi infrastructure

  • Working knowledge of on-prem Kubernetes operations

  • Experience using Grafana and Prometheus in an on-prem context

  • Proficiency with Linux systems administration fundamentals and at least one scripting language (e.g., Bash, Python) for automation and operational tasks.

  • Familiarity with operating in secure, classified, or highly regulated on-prem environments and adherence to associated processes (security, configuration control, and auditing).

  • Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills; ability to methodically diagnose issues across multiple interconnected services.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Experience using Helm and Rancher

  • Familiarity with Infrastructure as Code and configuration management tools (e.g., Terraform, Ansible) for maintaining existing on-prem infrastructure definitions and playbooks.

  • Experience with log aggregation and analysis platforms in on-prem environments (e.g., ELK/EFK or similar).

  • Experience working within formal change control and release management processes.

  • Exposure to microservices running on Kubernetes and related operational patterns (service discovery, scaling, health checks).

  • Behavioral Competencies

  • Operational ownership: Proactively monitors, maintains, and improves existing on-prem systems and DevOps toolchains.

  • Continuous improvement mindset: Identifies and implements incremental enhancements within established architectures and constraints.

  • Team collaboration: Works closely with senior engineers, system administrators, security, and development teams to execute defined technical directions.

  • Discipline and rigor: Adheres to security, configuration management, and documentation expectations in a classified on-prem environment.

Primary Level Salary Range: $91,800.00 - $137,600.00Secondary Level Salary Range: $114,000.00 - $171,000.00The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

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About Northrop Grumman

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work - and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible.

Industry

Space research administration

Company size

10,000+ Employees

Headquarters location

Falls Church, VA, US

Year founded

1939