Intern - Water Resources

Do you want to make a difference in your community while also gaining career experience? Do you want to expand your network and build your resume while learning about the water industry? If so, an internship with Contra Costa Water District (CCWD) may be the best choice for you! Come apply for this incredible opportunity to gain relevant work experience in the public sector while positively impacting local communities.

CCWD is an innovative leader in water management and provides employees with a fast-paced and stable work environment that encourages professional growth and development.

The Mission of the CCWD is to strategically provide a reliable supply of high-quality water at the lowest cost possible, in an environmentally responsible manner.

Our Values

- Safety: We provide, as a top priority, a safe and healthy work environment for our team.

- Trust: We protect the public trust with uncompromising integrity, commitment to our professional standards, full transparency, and fairness in all our business dealings.

- Responsibility: We take ownership of our results and deliver on our performance outcomes to responsibly serve our customers, our community, and our planet.

- Exceptional Service: We value our customers, act in their best interest, and take pride in delivering personalized service.

- Employee Success: We share a meaningful sense of purpose in an environment that strives to offer professional growth, diversity, inclusivity, and work-life balance.

- Teamwork: We engage in respectful, collaborative, trust-based relationships at all levels within the organization and with our business partners.

- Continuous Improvement: We continuously seek opportunities to optimize our business practices and assets by engaging the expertise of our employees and embracing innovation.

- Recognition: We reward the positive contributions of our employees at the organization, team, and individual levels.

- Communication: We strive for open, effective dialogues at all levels of the organization to ensure input is valued and considered and reasons for decisions are explained.

We are looking for someone who is:

- Knowledgeable of civil, environmental, chemical engineering, or environmental science fields and/or is pursuing or has received a degree with major coursework in environmental compliance, hydraulics/fluid mechanics, chemistry/water quality, water supply planning, and/or related fields.

- Solutions-focused and a creative problem-solver.

- A motivated self-starter with effective interpersonal and technical skills.

- An organized and results-driven team player.

A few reasons you might enjoy this job:

- Gain working understanding of various aspects of water resources and water supply, with an emphasis on planning.

- Participate in engaged, analytical problem-solving tasks like hydraulic modeling, data analysis, and building tools that improve data quality and efficiency.

- Build relationships and contribute to projects with cross-department collaboration, like CCWD’s Grants Program, partner agencies, and internal teams that support operation of CCWD’s public water system.

- Gain exposure and hands-on experience with long-range planning efforts and infrastructure projects, including capital improvement planning and facility/water management studies that help shape the CCWD’s water future.

The following will also benefit candidates with a few of the unique challenges related to this job:

- Assisting with preparing the CCWD's greenhouse gas inventory.

- Creating and improving tools to automate spreadsheet quality control checking and templates to ensure proper data tracking and evaluations.

- Performing hydraulic modeling assignments by utilizing CCWD’s hydraulic model to analyze the distribution system and assist in developing documentation for system impact analyses.

- Collaborating with the Grants Specialist in administration of State and Federal grants, including preparation of progress reports, invoicing, and coordination with partner agencies.

- Assisting with regulatory reporting and supporting timely completion of CCWD’s various regulatory reports including review and compilation of data in response to monthly drought and conservation reports submitted to the State Water Resources Control Board’s Division of Drinking Water SAFER Program, bi-annual Groundwater Monitoring Reports for CCWD’s Randall-Bold Water Treatment Plant, or other reporting requirements.

- Assisting with the data collection and analysis in support of upcoming updates to planning documents and studies, which may include the Building Facilities Comprehensive Plan, Facility Reserve Charge Study, and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Water Management Plan. Work in support of these efforts may include evaluation of CCWD’s facilities and operational needs, water supply infrastructure and capital improvement planning, and projected water supplies and demands.

This internship offers an excellent opportunity to gain practical experience and collaborate with seasoned professionals on various aspects of facilities and water supply planning. Through a combination of research, analysis, and fieldwork you will gain valuable insights into the complexities of water systems and the strategies employed to optimize their functionality.

For a full listing of required knowledge, skills, and abilities, please refer to the job description by visiting the following link: Intern

Preferred Skills

- Coursework in hydraulic modeling software is desirable but not required.

- Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite of software.

- High proficiency in Microsoft Excel.

Preferred Intern Availability

- Full-time or part-time during Spring 2026, and/or

- Full-time during Summer 2026.

- Possible extension into Fall 2026 depending on circumstances.

Interns can work on a full-time or part–time basis on a flexible schedule. The candidate selected may start in early Spring of 2026. The maximum number of hours that can be worked is 1,000 hours per fiscal year.

Possession of the minimum qualifications does not guarantee an invitation to the next step in the selection process. All candidate materials will be carefully evaluated and only those considered best qualified will be invited to the next step in the selection process.

Physical Demands

Must possess mobility to work in a standard office setting and use standard office equipment, including a computer; to operate a motor vehicle and visit various District and meeting sites; vision to read printed materials and a computer screen; and hearing and speech to communicate in person and over the telephone. This is primarily an office classification and standing in work areas and walking between work areas is required. Finger dexterity is needed to access, enter, and retrieve data using a computer keyboard or calculator and to operate standard office equipment. Positions in this classification occasionally bend, stoop, kneel, reach, push, and pull drawers open and closed to retrieve and file information. Employees must possess the ability to lift, carry, push, and pull materials and objects up to 25 pounds. When working in the field, must possess strength, stamina, and mobility to sit, stand, and walk on level, uneven, or slippery surfaces to conduct field visits and assess field conditions; and reach, twist, turn, kneel, bend, stoop, squat, and crouch in the performance of assigned duties.

Environmental Elements

Employees work in an office environment with moderate noise levels, controlled temperature conditions, and no direct exposure to hazardous physical substances. Employees occasionally work in the field and are exposed to loud noise levels, cold and hot temperatures, inclement weather conditions, road hazards, vibration, confining workspace, chemicals, mechanical and/or electrical hazards, hazardous physical substances and fumes, dust, and air contaminants.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Contra Costa Water District is committed to equal employment opportunity for all employees and applicants. We prohibit discrimination based upon race, color, religion, marital status, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic information, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other actual or perceived status protected under federal, state, or local law. Employment decisions are based on individual qualifications and performance.

Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion

One of the many CCWD goals is to pursue organizational excellence through diversity, equity, inclusivity, leadership, and professionalism. We recognize the strengths of staff creativity, innovation, problem-solving, and improved decision-making resulting from diverse perspectives, and we strive to be a culturally diverse organization that values, recognizes, and supports inclusion.

Conviction History

A condition of employment for all CCWD positions includes successfully passing a Department of Justice Live Scan fingerprint check and completion of the federal Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9. Additionally, in compliance with federal law, CCWD participates in E-Verify.

Disaster Service Worker

All CCWD employees are designated Disaster Service Workers through state and local law. As such, CCWD employees may be called upon to support the activities of CCWD during an emergency situation.

Applicants requesting reasonable accommodation during any phase of the recruitment process should contact Human Resources at 925-688-8002.