The public’s right to clean water standards is key to the health and wellbeing of communities, and Loyalist College is providing its students with leading-edge training to prepare them for leadership in this area. Beginning in 2012, graduates of the Loyalist College Environmental Technician and Technologist programs now have access to a specialized certification pertaining to water treatment practices. The College has received approval from the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and the Walkerton Clean Water Centre to incorporate the Entry-Level Operator course into the program curriculum.
Under the Ontario Ministry of Environment it is mandatory for all drinking water operators-in-training to take the Entry-Level course before being able to qualify for a class 1 certificate which is needed to work independently as an Operator in Charge (OIC). The College will integrate the Entry-Level Operators curriculum for the certificate into the Water and Wastewater Management course which is part of the program’s curriculum.
Loyalist College’s two and three-year Environmental programs have a strong 30-year history of training technical professionals for this important field. The programs are offered through the College’s new Sustainable Skills, Technology and Life Sciences Centre at its Belleville main campus.
City of Belleville Superintendent of Water and Waste Water Treatment, Perry DeCola, says that Loyalist’s adding the opportunity to earn this certification is a win-win for both graduates and employers. “If we were faced with a group of job applicants, all having similar qualifications, and one had completed the Entry-Level Operators course, that would definitely sway our decision in their favour. This saves us time and money because otherwise we would be required to send them on the course, incurring the costs of the program in addition to their time away from work. This is a very positive step and will give Loyalist graduates a competitive advantage in the field.”
In response to suggestions from graduates of the Loyalist College Environmental Technician and Technologist programs who are working within the industry, Professor Wallace Rendell has successfully undergone certification training in new freshwater assessment protocols, including the Ontario Benthos Biomonitoring Network Course and the Ontario Streams Assessment Protocol Course. Dr. Rendell has incorporated much of the content of these courses into his own courses in Field Biology and Limnology.
“By bringing this material to our current students, we better prepare them for certification opportunities outside the College which will lead to more job opportunities in the environmental field,” said Professor Rendell. “To do this, I had to re-train myself to some extent, and with the help of the College, I did. With further training, I hope to be able to certify our students in at least one of these freshwater assessment protocols during their tenure here at the College, similar to what we’re now doing in our Water and Wastewater Management course. Each certificate our students can earn gives them a leg up on their peers province-wide.”
“The field of environmental sciences is continually changing as research is conducted and new regulations are developed and implemented,” said Loyalist College President Maureen Piercy. “Our faculty is committed to staying in the forefront in this field, which is so important to public health and to our communities.”
For information on applying for admission to Loyalist’s Environmental Technician and Technologist programs click here.
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Contact: Marilyn Warren, Marketing, Loyalist College, (613) 969-1913, ext. 2332 or Dan Holland, Dean, Schools of Business and Management Studies, Biosciences and Centre for Justice Studies (613) 969-1913, ext. 2328