Stefan Petersen, M.S.

Experience

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  Audubon Community Swimming Pool Summers

  Jun 2005 - Aug 2008

  Lifeguard

  Oversaw swimming patronsTaught private and Red Cross swimming lessons

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  Littlefield Recreation Park

  Jun 2010 - Aug 2011

  Conservation Aid

  Planted trees, built barbed wire fences, and bailed hayWorked on maintenance crew for park and local bike trailHelped raise chickens, goats, buffalo, and sheep

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  University of Iowa State Hygienic Laboratory

  Jun 2011 - Aug 2011

  Limnology Intern

  • Assisted in water quality field work for the limnology department• Monitored and maintained automated ISCO samplers• Analyzed and gathered water samples from numerous lakes and rivers throughout Iowao Dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, chloride, conductivity, flow rates, and turbidity• Backpack shocked streams to identify fish species and collected macroinvertebrates

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  Mangold Environmental Testing Laboratory

  Sept 2011 - Dec 2011

  Environmental Lab Technician

  • Analyzed municipal water supplies as well as surface and groundwater supplies• Created and maintained testing standards and reagents • Ran biochemical oxygen demand and total suspended solid tests on water samples• Plated and counted E. coli colonies for bacterial analysis of water

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  Lakeside Laboratory

  Jun 2012 - Oct 2012

  Water Quality Technician

  Supervise volunteers and conduct water sampling trips on various Iowa lakesAnalyze surface and drinking water samples using manual and automated testing procedures for solids, bacteria, and nutrientsReceive, ship and enter samples into LIMS databasesEnter and analyze water quality data for seasonal trends

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  Iowa Department of Natural Resources

  Apr 2013 - Aug 2013

  Aquatic Invasive Species Technician

  • Sampled various lakes and rivers with multiple passive and active gears to determine the presence of nuisance species, such as, silver and bighead carp, zebra mussels, brittle naiad, curly-leaf pondweed and Eurasian milfoil• Identified fishes to species• Surveyed and identified macrophytes and photic zones• Create and deploy adult zebra mussel sampling structures• Collected and filtered water samples to detect zebra mussel veligers• Hauled, maintained, and operated prop-driven and jet propulsion boats on complex lake and river systems• Conducted boat inspections as an initial step in invasive species control • Provide public outreach concerning invasive species Show less

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  Dept of the Interior. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

  Aug 2013 - Jul 2014

  Biological Science Technician (Fisheries)

  • Logged thousands of hours hauling, maintaining, and operating boats up to 26’• Extensive experience using passive (gill nets, hoop nets, fyke nets, trot lines, etc.) and active sampling gear (electrofishing, push trawl, bow trawl, etc.)• Operate biosonics sonar equipment used for estimating fish abundance in water bodies• Use YSI units, GPS units and flow meters in the field• Collect structures for aging, microchemistry, and genetic analysis from fishes• Skilled in aging bony structures in fishes such as otoliths and post-cleithra• Identify larval, juvenile, and adult fishes to species• Author and edit invasive species risk assessments • Develop Biosonics sonar SOP’s to ensure QA/QC• Implant transmitters and deploy acoustic monitoring receivers (VR2W) to track Asian carp movement throughout the Ohio River• Filtering water samples to extract particulate matter for the use of Asian carp eDNA testing Show less

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  University of Iowa

  Jul 2014 - Aug 2015

  Environmental Lab Analyst

  • Conduct and analyze both manual and automated nutrient tests in the laboratoryo Phosphorous, nitrate-nitrate, total-kjeldahl nitrogen, total-suspended and volatile solids, chlorophyll, sulfides, optical brighteners, total coliform, E. coli, biochemical oxygen demand, and related testing• Manage sample processing and QA/QC procedures • Supervise volunteers collecting and filtering water samples• Manage and analyze water quality data in multiple formats including excel, google docs, OpenELIS databases, etc…• Consult and provide test results to clients• Member of the employee health and wellness committee Show less

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  Georgia Southern University

  Aug 2015 - May 2017

  Graduate Research Assistant

  • Aid in the recovery effort and establish baseline data to determine the health of the Ogeechee River, GA, after an excessive chemical discharge• Prepare and lead biological sampling trips• Collect and identify subtropical fish and macroinvertebrates• Retrieve and analyze water samples for nutrient and toxicant values• Design and create aquatic mesocosms• Design aquatic toxicology studies and analyzer metal bioaccumulation in aquatic streams• Operate analytical chemistry instruments, ICP-MS, TOC analyzer, etc.• Analyze stream productivity via periphyton biomass and chlorophyll a Show less

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  Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences

  Jun 2017 - Jan 2020

  Limnology Manager

  · Manage analytical laboratory and field sampling program· Train and supervise technical staff· Oversee quality analysis and quality control for the Center's analytical work· Conduct field measurements and water quality analyses in support of limnological research· Prepare and run mixing zone studies for municipal and industrial effluents· Write analytical standard operating procedures

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  University of Colorado Boulder College of Engineering & Applied Science

  Jan 2020 - now

  Instrumentation Laboratory Coordinator

  •Manage shared analytical laboratories used by ~70 graduate students•Teach students and professors how to operate analytical instruments•Create shared laboratory website•Integrate and determine analytical results from manual and automated instruments•Develop standard operating procedures (SOP’s) and ensure safe laboratory practices•Maintain and troubleshoot analytical chemistry instruments including:High Pressure Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (LCMS), Gas Chromatography (GC), Ion Chromatography (IC), ICP-MS, Spectrophotometers, Flourometer, Turbidimeter, Total Organic Carbon Analyzers (Chemical and Combustion Oxidation Systems), Varioskan Lux Plate Reader, Solar Simulators, Ozone Generator, Multi-Parameter Probes, Ultra-Pure Water Systems, Muffle Furnaces, Drying Ovens, and Balances Show less

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  The Watershed Center

  Feb 2021 - now

  Research Associate

  •Provide recommendations for analyzing and improving water quality•Collect water and macroinvertebrate samples to monitor water quality in watersheds experiencing acid rock drainage and wildfire impacts•Analyze water samples for long term monitoring groups•Collaborate with communities and water quality groups in Colorado