Aquatic Ecologist

About the role

The Aquatic Ecologist provides specialist ecological expertise to support water‑resource planning, operations, environmental compliance and regulatory programmes across Pennon Group’s operating regions. The role ensures that water‑resource activities are managed sustainably while protecting and enhancing aquatic ecosystems.

Key responsibilities

• Act as the technical lead for freshwater ecology, advising on statutory programmes such as WINEP, WRMP, drought plans and abstraction licences.
• Design, implement and manage aquatic ecological monitoring programmes, including macroinvertebrate and macrophyte surveys.
• Collect, analyse, interpret and report ecological data to assess environmental impacts and support decision‑making.
• Integrate hydrological, habitat and water‑chemistry information to provide a comprehensive view of catchment health.
• Produce technical reports and recommendations for operational compliance and environmental stewardship.

Required profile

• Demonstrated expertise in freshwater ecology and aquatic ecosystem assessment.
• Experience delivering ecological input for statutory environmental programmes and water‑resource planning.
• Ability to lead ecological surveys and interpret macroinvertebrate and macrophyte data.
• Strong analytical skills with a focus on integrating ecological, hydrological and water‑quality information.

Required skills

• Macroinvertebrate monitoring
• Macrophyte monitoring
• Ecological survey design and implementation
• Data analysis and interpretation
• Water‑quality assessment
• Hydrological data integration