Certification Bulletin
California-Nevada Section, American Water Works Association • Vol. 1 No. 1 • Spring 2000

The Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) created to develop draft regulations for water treatment and distribution operator certification has been meeting on a regular basis since fall of 1998. This committee, made up of representatives of California Department of Health Services, CA/NV AWWA (Bill Wulff, Bryan Troupe, and Darcy Burke) and other water organizational, utility, academic, and regulatory personnel, has recently completed work on the initial draft regulations. These have been submitted to the State Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for review. Assuming no major revisions are necessary, the current draft regulations will go into effect as soon as July 1, 2000. The following is a list of some of the more important elements of the new regulations the can be covered in this 30 minute presentation:

· SDWA requirements will affect both the current DOHS treatment operator program and necessitate the development of a distribution operator program.

· All treatment plant and distribution systems will need to be classified as T1-T5 and D1-D5 based upon specific criteria outlined in the regulations.

· All treatment operators will continue to need to be certified for their position requirements. Distribution will be slightly different in that each utility will be required to designate those individuals with DOHS who make process control decisions affecting water quality and/or quantity and thus will be required to be distribution certified.

· Those distribution operators whose only "treatment" charge is to apply or maintain chlorine residual in a distribution system (including wellhead maintenance) will not be required to be dual certified. A single distribution certificate will suffice. Treatment plant operators who utilize SCADA control to make operational changes to the system (beyond simple monitoring) will need to be dual certified.

· Operator-in-charge and shift operators will need to be certified at a level related to their plant or system classification as outlined in the regulations.

· CA/NV AWWA certificate holders will be state certified through reciprocity as outlined in the regulations.

· Grand-parenting (transitional certification) will be available for those not currently CA/NV AWWA certified. Specific limitations will be enforced.

· Specialized and continuing education/training requirements will be mandatory. The first Continuing education/training requirements will be mandatory for the July 1, 2003 renewals. There are specific differences between the two.

· Current proposed schedule of continuing education credits are as follows:

DISTRIBUTION OPERATORS

How will this affect me?

AWWA CERTIFIED DISTIBUTION OPERATORS: If you hold a valid Distribution Operator Certificate through the California – Nevada AWWA section, you will be able to send a copy of your current certification to Department of Health Services and receive California state certification (reciprocity). If you are a CA-NV AWWA Grade I Certified Distribution Operator, you will be certified as a Grade 2 through the state of California. The following table outlines the grade and renewal schedule through the California Department of Health Services for current AWWA Certified Operators ONLY:

For complete details on continuing education requirements, fees, and eligibility please refer to the CA-NV-AWWA WebSite (www.ca-nv-awwa.org).

CONTINUING EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS

For details on water courses available through CA-NV-AWWA, please visit the Water College WebSite (www.ca-nv-awwa.org).

How do I Get Certified through CA-NV AWWA?

Currently, CA-NV-AWWA administers both a Distribution Operator Certification program and a Distribution Associate Certification program. The Distribution Operator program will end on December 31, 2000. Levels of education and experience have been determined for each Grade. Applications, test schedules, fees, rules, educational requirements and all other related requirements are available at the CA-NV-AWWA WebSite (www.ca-nv-awwa.org) or through the section office. Simply review the requirements, complete the Distribution Certification Application, and forward the application, fee and required documentation to the Section office a MINIMUM OF 60 DAYS PRIOR TO THE REQURESTED EXAM DATE. The Program Administrator reviews each application and all submitted documentation. Based on the information provided, eligibility is determined. Upon qualifying for the exam, you will be notified by mail. The last exam scheduled for this year is December 29, 2000, in Rancho Cucamonga. The final date for all applications to be received into the Section office is October 29, 2000. NO EXCEPTIONS! If you have not already started the Certification process, start today! Good Luck!

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