R. Elena Ramirez - Northwest Geological Society

R. ELENA R AMIREZ, LG Tel. 206-434-6390
Seattle, Washington
ramirez.r.elena@gmail.com
INTRODUCTION & OBJECTIVE
As a licensed Washington State Geologist who brings more than 15 years of professional consulting and
academic research experience to my environmental and hydrogeologic projects, I am enthusiastic about
environmental problem solving. My experience includes a diverse cross-section of environmental
management and technical project experience in the areas of site investigation, soil and aqueous
geochemistry, water and sediment quality, geochemical fingerprinting, analytical chemistry, groundwatersurface
water interactions, chemical oceanography, and ultra-low level sampling techniques and analysis.
I enjoy the process of learning about new sites, environments, and the key environmental issues. I am
driven to work hard with my project teams to develop creative and effective solutions for my clients and
their complex and sensitive environmental management and compliance issues.
I seek career opportunities in environmental consulting for site assessments and strategic environmental
services.
EDUCATION
M.S. Earth Sciences - Geochemistry 2008
Dept. of Earth Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire
M.S. Thesis:
Aeolian-derived osmium inputs to the surface waters of the Sargasso Sea: Impact
of seasonal Saharan dust
B.S. Earth Sciences – Environmental and Surficial Geology 1998
Dept. of Earth & Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, California
Research Foci: Marine geochemical studies of metal contamination from a produced water outfall
Geochemical comparison of New Mexican lead ores and Anasazi pottery
Regional water and sediment quality monitoring in the San Francisco Bay
U/Th/Pb radiometric dating of zircons from the Cordillera Blanca batholith, Peru.
WORK EXPERIENCE
Environmental Geochemist/Chemical Oceanographer June 2011 – February 2013
Floyd|Snider Inc., Seattle, Washington
Fulfilled multiple roles in the small consulting firm ranging from Project Manager to Geologist as the needs
of the project and company dictate. Recent select project experience includes:
• Site-specific environmental analysis for a property/client within the Portland Harbor Superfund site
and was the primary author of a document outlining client’s environmental impact for cost
allocation assessment, Portland, Oregon.
• Field study of in-situ treatment of arsenic groundwater plume at a wood-debris impacted landfill site
in Fife, Washington resulting in a peer-reviewed publication.
• Geologic field exploration activities for landfill remedial investigation program at an active MSW
landfill in Walla Walla, Washington.
• Management and implementation of a remedial investigation for an MTCA-regulated combined
sediment-upland site in Bellingham, Washington.
• Review of environmental documents, technical reports, and preparation of findings report that
evaluates environmental risk and liability for property acquisition in Everett, Washington.
• Coordination of technical authors and review of technical work for a RI/FS report and development
of interim groundwater monitoring plan for MSW Landfill closure under MTCA, Seattle,
Washington.

R. ELENA RAMIREZ MARCH 2013
• Technical support for and modification of a site-specific environmental monitoring plan for
operational MSW landfill with the handling and storage of unique waste materials, Rock Creek,
Oregon.
• Technical research support for expert witness testimony and legal reports for a class-action
lawsuit.
• Organization of internal Geoscience work group, which aimed to provide training for junior level
staff, identify staff career development/mentorship areas, and to address firm-wide management
issues.
• Participation in the firm Database Management Committee, which develops processes and
formalized protocols for improving the accessibility and quality of environmental data.
• Recent training includes:
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Development of site-specific Cleanup Levels using MTCA workbooks
HAZWOPER (8-hour refresher) and HAZWOPER Supervisor
CPR and Red Cross First Aid
Senior/Project Geologist August 2001 – September 2005
Iris Environmental, Oakland, California
Fulfilled multiple roles in the small consulting firm ranging from Office Coordinator to Project
Geologist/Project Manager as the needs of the project and company dictate. Select project experience
includes:
• Management of a variety of field and research based investigative projects (primarily Phase II) for
support of Brownfield redevelopment, human health and ecological risk assessment,
environmental due diligence, insurance cost recovery, litigation support, environmental
construction oversight (including dust and storm water management) and regulatory compliance in
the Bay Area, California and Southern California.
• Design and implementation of complex field programs to investigate/characterize chemical
distribution in surface water, groundwater, soil gas, soil, sediment, and air.
• Review and assessment of field and laboratory data to develop site conceptual models and
synthesize environmental and hydrogeologic findings in technical summary reports.
• Preparation and communication of findings to clients and regulatory agencies through letters,
reports, and technical memoranda.
• Implementation of various exploratory techniques including: groundwater, soil, and soil gas grab
sampling; bore hole logging (USCS standards); monitoring well design, installation, and
development; potentiometric surface mapping; in-field water quality characterization; hazardous
waste profiling; and UST sampling and removal.
• Management of subcontractors, scheduling, and overall work progress; and oversight and training
of junior staff geologists.
• Participation in business development/marketing; prepared project scope and budget proposal
documents; and responded to requests for proposals by preparing bid documents.
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R. ELENA RAMIREZ MARCH 2013
Staff Geologist August 2000 – August 2001
LFR-Levine Fricke, Emeryville, California
Primary roles in this mid-sized consulting firm included lead technical writer and staff-level geologist.
Select project experience includes:
• Phase II soil and groundwater investigations (including remedial investigation and feasibility
studies), participated in groundwater monitoring programs, and maintained active groundwater
remediation systems.
• Laboratory-based bench top studies for remedial treatment design for the Campus Bay
Redevelopment project, Richmond, California.
• Evaluation of field and laboratory data, created site conceptual models, and prepared site
investigation and monitoring summary reports.
• Installation and demolition of groundwater monitoring wells.
• Management of complex budget tracking system and evolving monitoring program for large
multimillion-dollar actively litigated DNAPL project in Stockton, California.
• Preparation and communication of findings to clients and regulatory agencies through letters,
reports, and technical memoranda.
Graduate Researcher January 2008 – February 2011
University of Victoria, Victoria, BC
Doctoral research student in a biogeochemistry laboratory group, which specialized in ultra-low level trace
metal analyses. Select responsibilities and experiences include:
• The study of biogeochemical cycling of bioactive trace metals in surface seawater and related
productivity in HNLC regions of the Arctic and Pacific Oceans. Synthesis and presentation of
research findings and environmental interpretations.
• Collection of large volume seawater samples using trace metal clean techniques for the
development of seawater profiles and measurements of bioactive trace metals for concentration
and speciation by Chemiluminescence-Flow Injection Analysis (FIA) methods.
• Laboratory-based measurements (FIA using FlowZF software) and sample preconcentration
systems to measure select metals by ICPMS.
• Geochemical modeling of high-latitude polar surface water brines (Geochemist Work Bench).
Graduate Researcher/Teaching Assistant September 2005 – December 2007
Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
Masters-level research student and teaching assistant in a radioisotope laboratory group, which
specialized in ultra-low level platinum group elemental analyses. Select responsibilities and experiences
include:
• Evaluation of osmium concentrations and isotopic ratios (by TIMS) to geochemically trace Saharan
dust inputs into surface waters of the North Atlantic Ocean.
• Teaching assistant for undergraduate courses and laboratory sections (i.e., Water & the
Environment, Natural Disaster, Environmental Climate Change, Earth Resources, Intro to Geologic
Principles, Field Geology).
• Preparation of several large-scale class projects focusing on aquatic geochemical modeling
(Matlab/VisualMINTEQ), environmental data analysis (JMP statistical package), and proposal
writing.
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R. ELENA RAMIREZ MARCH 2013
Postgraduate/Undergraduate Research Assistant June 1995 – May 1998
University of California, Santa Cruz, California
Positions ranged from undergraduate intern and work study student to a full-time post-graduate research
assistant in an environmental toxicology laboratory group, which specialized in the heavy metal
geochemistry of natural and contaminated environments. Select responsibilities and experiences include:
• General surface water quality and trace metal clean sampling protocols for collecting surface
water, groundwater, marine sediments, and biological specimens.
• Measurement of marine sediments, rock/ore, and pottery samples by ICPMS for geochemical
analysis including heavy metals and lead isotopes for geochemical fingerprinting.
• Coordination, preparation, and participation in complex triennial sea-going field expedition
programs for ongoing monitoring projects. Participation in laboratory-wide data management and
QC/QA.
PRESENTATIONS & PUBLICATIONS
Beaulieu, B. and Ramirez. R. In Press. Arsenic Remediation Field Study Using a Sulfate Reduction and
Zero-Valent Iron PRB. Ground Water Monitoring & Remediation.
Charters, J., McAlister, J., Ramirez, R., Cullen, J., and Orians, K. GEOTRACES IPY – High resolution
profiles of trace metals in the Beaufort Sea: Tracers of oceanographic processes. Nordic
Environmental Chemistry Conference, Svalbard, Norway, March 2, 2010.
Ramirez, R. and Cullen, J. Iron(II) in seawater of the Arctic Ocean: Observations from the GEOTRACES
IPY Expedition in the Beaufort Sea. Ocean Sciences meeting, Portland, Oregon, February 22,
2010.
Ramirez, R., Sedwick, P., and Sharma, M. An Aeolian Source of Non-radiogenic Osmium to Surface
Waters of the Sargasso Sea. American Geophysical Union meeting, San Francisco, California,
December 13, 2006.
Ramirez, R., Ritson, P., Señudo-Wilhelmy, S. and Flegal A. R., Stable lead isotope tracing in a near-shore
environment. University of California Toxic Substances Research and Teaching Program annual
meeting, Davis, California, April 3, 1997.
Ramirez, R., Ritson, P., and Flegal A. R., Stable lead isotope tracing of contaminant lead in produced
water. Geologic Society of America, Cordilleran Section Meeting, Portland, Oregon, April 23, 1996.
Beck, N., Ganguli, P., Ramirez, R., Sampson, D. and Flegal, A. R., The use of lead isotopes to trace
associated contamination in the subsurface. University of California Toxic Substance Research
and Teaching Program Symposium, Santa Cruz, California, March 29, 1996.
Ganguli, P., Beck, N., Ramirez, R., Sampson, D. and Flegal, A. R., Lead as a tracer in the environment.
11th Biennial Groundwater Conference, September 17, 1995.
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
American Geophysical Union
Association of Women Geoscientists
Northwest Geological Society
REFERENCES
Available upon request.
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