Water and wastewater practitioners invited to comment on operator standards

A new standard to help ensure water and waste water operators are well trained and have the right expertise is in its final draft stages. The organization behind the draft standard is asking for input from practitioners in the water and wastewater industry.
The tragedy in Walkerton, Ontario two years ago when seven people died as a result of contaminated drinking water was partly blamed upon neglect and poor practices of the system operators. Inexperienced or untrained operators have also been seen as the cause of some of the problems with water and wastewater treatment plants in First Nations communities.
The Calgary-based Canadian Council for Human Resources in the Environment Industry (CCHREI) is to post the first drafts of the standard, “National Occupational Standards for Canadian Water and Wastewater Operators” this month on their website at www.cchrei.ca/www/wwwwelcome.asp. The draft will be posted and open for comments until March 31, 2004.
As well, CCHREI is holding focus groups across Canada to gather in-depth feedback. They are being held on the following dates:
February 2 – Halifax
February 3 – Montreal
February 9 – Toronto
February 19 – Vancouver
February 26 – Winnipeg/Portage La Prairie.
Any practitioner interested in joining a focus group has to e-mail ater@cchrei.ca for information.
Once validated, the standards will serve as the foundation for industry training. They will also promote reciprocity between provinces.
CCHREI was established in 1992 as part of the Government of Canada’s sector council program in the field of environment-related human resource management.