1

Wildfire Clean Up Jobs in Oregon (NOW HIRING)

... wildfire-charred trees, and taste wild mint during a field lesson in ethnobotany. Many of them are ... Maintain cleanliness of living and common areas and help with clean-up at the end of each session ...

... wildfire-charred trees, and taste wild mint during a field lesson in ethnobotany. Many of them are ... Maintain cleanliness of living and common areas and help with clean-up at the end of each session ...

Wildfire Clean Up information

What is wildfire clean up?

Wildfire clean up refers to the process of safely removing debris, ash, hazardous materials, and damaged structures after a wildfire has occurred. The goal is to restore the affected area for safe habitation and prevent health risks related to toxic materials and unstable buildings. This work may involve specialized equipment and safety procedures, as well as collaboration with local authorities and environmental agencies. Cleanup teams must follow regulations to ensure proper disposal and minimize further environmental impact.

What are some common challenges faced by wildfire clean up crews, and how can new team members best prepare for them?

Wildfire clean-up crews often face challenging conditions such as hazardous debris, uneven terrain, and exposure to smoke or ash. New team members can best prepare by staying physically fit, learning proper use of personal protective equipment, and familiarizing themselves with safety protocols. Effective communication within the team and adaptability to rapidly changing environments are also crucial. Training sessions and briefings before each shift help ensure everyone is aware of potential hazards and the day’s objectives.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a wildfire clean up worker, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Wildfire Clean Up worker, you need physical endurance, knowledge of safety protocols, and experience with debris removal or environmental restoration, often supported by OSHA or HAZWOPER certifications. Familiarity with tools such as chainsaws, heavy machinery, and personal protective equipment (PPE) is typically required. Attention to detail, teamwork, and strong communication skills help ensure tasks are completed safely and efficiently. These abilities are crucial for maintaining safety, minimizing environmental impact, and restoring affected areas promptly after wildfire events.

What is the difference between Wildfire Clean Up vs Fire Damage Restoration?

AspectWildfire Clean UpFire Damage Restoration
CredentialsEnvironmental safety training, PPE useRestoration certifications, IICRC certification
Work EnvironmentOutdoor, post-wildfire sitesIndoor and outdoor, post-fire damage sites
Industry UsageEnvironmental cleanup after wildfiresRestoring properties after various fires
Search IntentWildfire cleanup servicesFire damage repair and restoration

Wildfire Clean Up focuses on removing debris and hazardous materials after wildfires, often outdoors and requiring environmental safety protocols. Fire Damage Restoration involves repairing and restoring properties damaged by fires, including structural repairs and cleaning. While both roles deal with fire-related damage, wildfire cleanup emphasizes environmental safety and outdoor work, whereas fire damage restoration covers a broader range of repair services for various fire incidents.

What job categories do people searching Wildfire Clean Up jobs in Oregon look for?

The top searched job categories for Wildfire Clean Up jobs in Oregon are:

Infographic showing various Wildfire Clean Up job openings in Oregon as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 80% Full Time, and 20% Temporary. Highlights an 100% In-person job distribution.

Supervisory Wildland Firefighter

Office of the Secretary of the Interior

Hines, OR • On-site, Remote

$78K - $101K/yr

Full-time

Posted 9 days ago


Job description

Summary
This is a Direct-Hire advertisement. Veterans preference is not applicable to this advertisement. Learn more about this authority at: Direct Hire Authority
These Supervisory Wildland Fire positions are with the US Wildland Fire Service, GW-0456-10 working in the following location(s):
  • Hines, Oregon
  • Vale, Oregon

Learn more about this agency
Duties
Help
As a Supervisory Wildland Firefighter your duties will include but are not limited to the following:
  • Supervises multiple subordinate Supervisory Wildland Firefighters and provides second-level supervision over their staff
  • Provides leadership and direction to subordinates to achieve fire response readiness.
  • Ensures preparedness of wildland fire suppression equipment and staff. Serves on preparedness review teams
  • Applies an experienced understanding of firefighter safety, fire behavior, topography of the area, weather, fuels, and training in fire management work to: 1) supervise, mentor, and instruct employees on crewmember duties; 2) plan action and direct utilization of fireline resources on less complex fires; and 3) for more complex fires, direct assigned suppression operations and recommend and implement tactical strategy on attacking, controlling, or mopping up fires, building or patrolling firelines, cleaning up burned areas within firelines, suppressing spot fires, felling snags or trees, and cutting brush.

Requirements
Help
Conditions of employment
Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
Suitability for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
Direct Deposit Required.
You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use.
This position requires the incumbent to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of their official duties. Selectee must hold and maintain a valid state driver's license throughout their employment in this position.
A condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a [1-year probationary period OR 2-year trial period] during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated.
Supervisory Probationary Period: Selectees who have not previously completed a supervisory probationary period, will be required to serve a one-year supervisory/managerial probationary period for this position.
Individuals assigned male at birth after 12-31-59 must be registered for the Selective Service. To verify registration visit SSS.gov.
You must be 18 years of age or older to be assigned to a hazardous position.
You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
Qualifications
In order to qualify for this position you must possess the Minimum Qualification requirements listed below.
To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.
Selective Placement Factor(s): This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. Those who do not provide evidence they possess the following selective factor(s) will be rated not qualified.
1. This position has been identified as one of the key fire management positions under the Interagency Fire Program Management (IFPM) Standard. This position has been categorized as a Wildland Fire Operations Specialist (WFOS) Moderate Complexity and requires selectee to meet the minimum qualification standards for IFPM prior to being placed into the position. Detailed information regarding IFPM positions can be found here: Interagency Fire Program Management (IFPM). To meet IFPM requirements, you must have possessed all of the following National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) incident management qualifications and training requirements to be considered eligible for this position (currency not required at time of referral, but may be required to obtain and maintain currency if selected):
Pathway #1:
A.) Task Force Leader (TFLD); AND
B.) Incident Commander Type 3 (ICT3), OR Prescribed Fire Burn Boss Type 2 (RXB2).
-OR-
Pathway #2:

A.) Helibase Manager (HEBM); AND
B.) Incident Commander Type 3 (ICT3).
Basic Qualification Requirements:
2. Applicants must have documented prior primary firefighting experience, with substantial service defined as either:
  • At least one full fire season working in a primary wildland firefighting role (e.g., Engine Crew, Fire Effects Crew, Prescribed Fire/Fuels Crew, Hand Crew, Helitack Crew, Hotshot Crew, Smokejumper, Wildland Fire Modules or Fire Suppression Crews, etc.) with a federal, state, tribal, local, or private-sector organization;- OR -
  • At least 14-days of on-the-ground fireline experience (cumulative or consecutive).

Prior primary wildland fire experience must be clearly documented in your resume.Note: an IQCS Master Record or equivalent document will not be used to determine or calculate prior primary wildland fire experience eligibility for this requirement.
Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. Please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience.
In addition to the requirements described above, the following additional experience is required.
Only experience and education obtained by 08/31/2026 will be considered.
Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. Please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience.
Minimum Qualification GW-0456-10
To qualify for the GW-10 grade level:
If you are a current or former federal employee who served in a competitive or excepted appointment, your resume must show that you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GW-08 grade level. Examples of work experience include but are not limited to: on-the-line wildland fire experience leading a module in fire control, prevention or suppression work; predicting and monitoring fire behavior; and monitoring need for equipment and resources used to respond to wildland fires. Please provide an SF50 with your application package to verify that you are a current or former federal employee.
OR

If you have never been or are NOT a current federal employee who served in a competitive or excepted appointment, your resume must show that you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GW-09 grade level. Examples of work experience include but are not limited to: on-the-line wildland fire experience supervising a module in fire control, prevention or suppression work; monitoring and analyzing fire behavior; overseeing and evaluating needs for equipment and resources used to respond to wildland fires; and assisting in the development of incident strategies and tactics.
IMPORTANT - PLEASE NOTE: There is not an option to qualify for the 0456 series utilizing education at this grade level.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
*Applicants must meet all minimum qualification requirements for the position of interest by the closing date of the Job Announcement.
Secondary Firefighter Retirement Coverage - Applicants for this secondary administrative fire fighter position under the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412 (d), must possess knowledge of the principles, methods, and techniques of wildland firefighting as demonstrated by direct wildland firefighting experience. In order to receive credit, you must provide a written description of your experience in wildland firefighting. Education without hands-on wildland firefighting experience does not meet this requirement. Periods of wildland firefighting experience, gained through militia and rural fire departments, can also be credited. Wildland fire is defined as any non-structure fire that occurs in the wildland. Two distinct types of wildland fire have been defined and include wildfire and prescribed fires as follows: Wildfire: Unplanned ignitions or prescribed fires that are declared wildfires. Prescribed Fires: Planned ignitions. This description includes only fire line experience on a Prescribed Fire; it does not include experience in the planning stages. Prescribed fire experience must be supplemented by fire suppression experience in order to be creditable as previous wildland firefighting experience.
Physical Demands: Arduous exertion for protracted periods of time such as, but not limited to, extensive running, walking, climbing, kneeling, stooping, pulling hoses, jumping and twisting, prolonged standing, walking over uneven ground, and recurring bending, reaching, lifting and carrying of items weighing over 50 pounds and shared lifting and carrying of heavier items, and similar activities requiring at least average agility and dexterity.
Working Conditions: Forest, range, and desert environments in steep terrain where surfaces may be extremely uneven, rocky, covered with thick tangled vegetation, smoky conditions, etc. Temperatures commonly exceed 100 degrees F and may fall below freezing. Risks include smoke inhalation, fire entrapment, snake or insect bites and stings, exposure to excessive machinery noise, and falling and rolling material. Employee must adjust and cope with exposure to weather elements, dust and smoke, poor bivouac and eating situations under an unpredictable set of circumstances. Firefighters may be required to live in backcountry camps for extended periods of time. The hazardous nature of the work requires that personal protective equipment be worn (e.g., boots, hard hat, gloves, flame resistant clothing). Work may require travel by fixed wing or rotor wing aircraft.
Education
There is no qualifying education for the 0456 series at the GW-10 grade level.
Additional information
Reemployment Priority List (RPL): The RPL is the mechanism agencies use to give reemployment consideration to their former competitive service employees separated by a RIF or who have fully recovered from a compensable injury after more than one year. If you are currently on an RPL, you may be given priority consideration.
PCS INFORMATION:
-Yes, entitlements for payment of basic moving expenses, as required and to the extent allowed by the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) 302-3.101, are authorized for eligible applicants changing duty station when the change meets the distance tests as provided in FTR 302-1.1 and 302-2.6. All moving expenses are taxable.
-In addition, relocation discretionary entitlements May be authorized for this position excluding contractor-provided home sale.
If eligible and qualified, you may be offered a recruitment or relocation incentive. The decision to offer an incentive will be made on a case-by-case basis and is neither promised nor guaranteed.
Telework:
This position is suitable for telework only in an emergency or natural disaster.
Additional Vacancies: One or more positions may be filled from applications received under this announcement in the advertised office or other U.S. Wildland Fire Service offices in the local commuting area.
Reasonable Accommodation: The USWFS provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. Please visit USAJOBS Help Center | Reasonable accommodation policy if you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process.
Applicants are ineligible for this position if ANY time they have been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony crime of domestic violence, unless such conviction was expunged, set aside or the applicant receives a pardon.
Probation/Trial Period Con't: The [probationary or trial] period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider:
- your performance and conduct;
- the needs and interests of the agency;
- whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
- whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and