Special Edition
The Operators Seminar, held in Banff, is the marquee event for Alberta
water and wastewater professionals. This year was our 40th anniversary
event and there were many special moments during the seminar.
Popular workshops and technical sessions included: impacts of extreme
events on utilities, environmental liability for water systems, drinking
water regulation updates, and various industry presentations.
There were many opportunities to network with operators from across
the province and to see the latest in technology and services displayed at
the 136 trade show booths.
Alberta Environment & Sustainable Resource Development staff were
on hand to answer questions about regulations, training and
certification. Nearly 100 operators took the opportunity to write their
provincial certification exams.
The fun Casino Night was a hit, as
were the prize draws leading up to
the $1,000 travel voucher grand
finale. The Thursday night banquet
and awards presentation was well
attended. The hypnotist Wayne Lee
had the banquet audience in stitches.
Verne Browne receives his 30 year
membership award.
Finally, 100 people proudly received
their 10, 20 or 30 year AWWOA
membership recognition awards.
● Nearly 1,000 in attendance,
including about 600 delegates
● 136 trade show booths
● New AWWOA executive
board elected
● ESRD proposed significant
regulation changes
● Workshop on Environmental
Liability
● Launch of AWWOA’s new
logo and branding
● Video interviews with
operators
This year at the seminar,
AWWOA and its members
raised over $20,000 for Water
School and Water for People
Canada charities.
There was a silent auction,
50/50 draw, and presenters
were thanked with a charitable
donation in their names.
These projects make a real
difference in local
communities. Thank you for
giving so generously.
The AWWOA seminar has evolved over the past 40 years:
● It has grown from small schoolroom talks to auditorium presentations
highlighting the most-up to-date water and wastewater industry news,
training and technologies.
● The week long event has expanded to include workshops, a trade show,
key speakers, Executive meetings, charitable donations activities, and
certification exams.
● There are more networking opportunities for delegates including
lunches, a guest program, a social evening, a banquet and awards
presentations.
● In addition to operators, it now also attract engineers, lab specialists,
suppliers and environmental representatives.
Nancy McAteer Bert Miller Quentin Syryda Andy Bebbington Ryan Ropcean Ed Spohr Al Kendrick George Wybenga Garth Carl Dwayne Cikaluk Norm Grexton Paresh Dhariya Dave Harrison Tim Gourlay Darren Demchuk Kathy Abramowski -
Chair
Vice Chair
Past Chair
Finance Chair
Comms. Chair
Seminar Chair
Nominations Chair
Training Chair
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
NAIT Rep
ESRD Rep.
(back, left) George Wybenga, Ryan Ropcean, Dwayne Cikaluk, Dan Rites,
Garth Carl, Kathy Abramowski, Bert Miller Jr., Al Kendrick, Dave Harrison.
(front, left) Scott Chant, Kim Fath, Andy Bebbington, Nancy McAteer (new Chair)
Quentin Syryda (past Chair), Norm Grexton, Darren Demchuk
“There was something for everyone at the
AWWOA seminar and trade show.”
A special thank you to our dedicated
sponsors for their generous
contributions:
● Alberco Construction
● Aquatera Utilities
● BioMaxx
● IVIS
Hypnotist Wayne Lee works the crowd.
Plenty of displays and demos
● MPE Engineering
● MSSA
● Spartan Controls
● Stantec
● Xylem
Many volunteers helped out.
Many people enjoyed banquet night.
Young operators show their vogue.
Casino Night with funny money
A supplier brings Hawaii to Banff.
Those Were the Days My Friend…
The Operators Seminar has always provided an
opportunity to renew old friendships and make new
ones. We have had the Executive shave their heads
twice; enter a pie-throwing contest (as the targets),
having the membership guessing the total weight of
the Executive, all to earn charitable donations.
Sadness came when we lost Tom Duglosz from Slave Lake, who was
serving on our Executive board and seminar committees. Also, we were
proud to re-name the AWWOA Service award after long-time member
Ron Bayne.
We’ve had presentations from government , engineering firms, suppliers,
water experts and wastewater specialists and some very brave operators.
One high point in a past seminar was when Burt Hingley from the Village
of Lamond gave a presentation on “The Small Town Operator.” As nervous
as Burt was, he did a great job and received a standing ovation, never
duplicated again.
Well there you have it, a very brief view into our AWWOA seminar past,
just imagine what lies ahead for us over the next 40 years!
Doug Thorson
Alberta Water & Wastewater Operators Association
10806-119 Street, Edmonton, Alberta, T5H 3P2
Toll free: 1-877-454-7745, Local: 780-454-7745
Email: [email protected] Website: www.awwoa.ca
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Alberta Operators circa 1973
The AWWOA Operators
Seminar, as well as the water
and wastewater industry, has
come a long way in the past 40
years.
Operators in 1975 did not have
a computer or automated
systems, government
regulations were less strict,
and there wasn’t a strong
focus on Health, Safety and
Environment.
After work, the typical
operator likely wore bell
bottom jeans, listened to Led
Zepplin, and enjoyed closet
disco dancing.
In 2055, operators will no
doubt look back and laugh at
our technology and fashion
sense. But they will still relate
to an operator’s dedication to
the essentials of clean drinking
water and responsible
wastewater management.
Dan Rites, C Tech
AWWOA , Executive Director