Watermark > Spring 2003 > BCWWA News

BCWWA News: Professional on the Move and other News

• Kevin Ramsay Moves On
• Bob Smith, Director of Public Health Protection retires after 35 years of service with the Ministry of Health
• Retired but not retired Leo Albrecht
• Al Kraus – Water supply icon retires
• Liisa Bloomfield – A passion for BNR
• Jack M. Vanderwood – All in a day’s work
• A new era of health protection

Kevin Ramsay Moves On

By Neal Carley

Kevin Ramsay of the City of Vancouver recently moved from Operations Water Works Manager to the position of Manager of Streets Operations. His new position involves the leadership of 350 employees and an annual budget in the order of $40 million. Unfortunately, Kevin will no longer be involved in the water industry. He was considered a leader in the water works field in BC and he will be greatly missed.

Kevin has been a guiding, and sometimes blinding, light for the BCWWA over the past 15 years. For the past nine years, Kevin served on the BCWWA Board, including the position of President for the 2000-2001 term. His flare for pushing the envelope and his passion for fun truly brought the best out in everyone he worked with at the BCWWA. Above all, Kevin dared to question and openly challenge every aspect of the way the BCWWA conducted business, which has helped shape the association into a financially stable and customer-focussed organization.

During his years on the BCWWA Board, Kevin moved the Association to run like a business with a mandate of education in the water and waste fields. As Treasurer, he hired our first bookkeeper and implemented timely fiscal reports and strengthened the financial controls. As President, Kevin helped hire our current Executive Director (Del Haylock) and assisted Del to understand our business and strategic initiatives. Through his many contacts and unquestionable (or questionable) charisma, Kevin was instrumental in developing our close ties with the senior ministry staff in Victoria and with national contacts in Ottawa. As Past-President, Kevin took the lead in the purchase of the BCWWA’s office, which has improved productivity and raised the profile of the Association.

Kevin started several strange and curious traditions within the BCWWA, most of which involve some intricate combination of tequila, wrestling, and airborne cutlery. An enduring tradition has been the “Presidential Dip” in Okanagan Lake whenever the BCWWA Annual conference is in Penticton.

Kevin’s leadership and unbridled enthusiasm will be missed by the BCWWA. We wish Kevin all the best.

Bob Smith, Director of Public Health Protection retires after 35 years of service with the Ministry of Health

The Honorable Colin Hansen, Minister of Health Services, and the Lieutenant Governor Iona Campagnolo, recently honored Bob Smith, BCWWA Vancouver Island Director with a long-service award. This Award Ceremony took place at Government House in Victoria in November 2002.Congratulations Bob, on a fascinating and rewarding career of public service to the citizens of British Columbia.

Bob has now embarked on a second career of public service as an unpaid volunteer drawing on his professional experience in the public sector. He is currently working on a joint Environment Canada and Health Canada drinking water document, entitled “Guidance for Safe Drinking Water in Canada: From Source to Tap.” This document will be sent out for public consultation this spring.

Bob is also investigating trends in enteric diseases as part the National Health Canada Enteric Disease Surveillance Steering Committee. This is an extension of his previous responsibilities in both food and drinking water while Director of Public Health Protection with the Ministry of Health.

The BC Medical Association has recognized Bob as a “knowledge person” in drinking water policy and legislation. Dr. Bill Meekison, Chair, Environment and Water Quality Committee of the BC Medical Association recently asked Bob to sit on this committee. Bob has readily accepted this challenge and has attended several meetings where proposed policy and legislation in the drinking water field has been discussed.

The area in which Bob has taken the most active part and where his passion and most of his time is spent (with the exception of golf) is in his commitment to the principles and practices put forward by the BC Water and Waste Association. In this regard, Bob somehow finds time to be Vancouver Island Director, Web Based Learning Chairman, and sit on the Ad Hoc Source to Tap Steering Committee and the Communications and Water Utility Improvement Committees.

Wow, and this is retirement—hmmm– his dear wife Judy wonders if he will ever retire. Seriously, we are pleased to have Bob’s talents, expertise and time that he readily volunteers to advancing the principles of BCWWA. Keep up the good work, Bob!

Retired but not retired Leo Albrecht

After 27 years with the City of Kamloops, Leo Albrecht has decided to retire. Leo began work with the City in April 1975 as a labourer, and ends his career as the Utility Chief Operator and Co-Ordinator for the City of Kamloops Utilities Division.

Leo immigrated from Germany to Vancouver in September 1965 following two years of service with the West German Armed Forces. He was an accomplished jeweler in Germany and, upon arrival, continued his trade. Leo found himself working for the Bentall Towers, Terminal City Ironworks and Royal Cartage in Vancouver before his move to Kamloops.

Leo has been very active in the BCWWA for many years and has been a Board of Directors Member of the Environmental Operators Certifi - cation Society (EOCP) since 1991. For the EOCP, he gets involved as exam coordinator and completes CEU assessments. Leo received the high honour of recipient of the Victor M. Terry Award (BCWWA Operator of the Year Award) in Vernon in 1987. His certification levels include Wastewater Treatment Class VI, Wastewater Collection Class III and Water Distribution Class III.

Leo and his wife Nancy reside in Kamloops with their dog Brew and are very proud of their daughter Brenda and seven year-old granddaughter Kaitlynn. He’s always been very active in community events (including volunteering for the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League) and will undoubtedly continue to stay active in the EOCP and BCWWA when he’s not out fl y-fishing and relaxing in a cabin at Hefley Lake. All the best Leo! Retired but not retired Leo Albrecht

Al Kraus – Water supply icon retires

After nearly 20 years with the Fraser Valley Regional District, an icon for the supply of water to thousands of Abbotsford and Mission residents has retired. Al Kraus, Superintendent of Water Supply Services for the Central Fraser Valley Water Commission has retired after an extremely successful and rewarding career.

Al enlisted in the Corps of Royal Canadian Engineers at the age of 16. He continued his career as an infantryman until he saw the light and realized a technical career was the way to go. In 1968, he remustered into the WSPOL (water, sewage petroleum, oil and lubricants) trade. Al attained the rank of Master Warrant Offi cer before he retired from the armed forces in 1981. Al subsequently took up a position as an engineering technician with the City of Mission. In 1984, Al was successful in obtaining a position with Dewdney Allouette Regional District (DARD) as the Assistant Water Supply Coordinator; the type of position that he had been trained for in the Canadian Forces. Al held this position for seven years until he was promoted to Water Supply Superintendent for DARD / Fraser Valley Regional District.

During his professional career, Al was on the BC Board of Water and Wastewater Operators Voluntary Certifi cation Program and was Board Chairman from 1976 to 1978. He has been a member of the BCWWA since 1974 and was a member of the executive committee for Operator Education and Certifi cation from 1975 to 1977. He was a BCWWA School Instructor from 1973 to 1977 and also a member of the School Co-ordinating Committee. He was a British Columbia provincial representative to the Federation of Associations of the Canadian Environment (FACE), preparing training and certifi cation programs on an inter-provincial basis for water and wastewater operators. Al has been a member of the Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of B.C. (ASTT BC) since 1977 and has sat on the ASTT BC Accreditation Board since 1992.

Al was instrumental in bringing Norrish Creek water on-tap for thousands of Abbotsford and Mission residents. Norrish came on-line in May 1984 and Al was one of the staff at that time that operated the system.Back then, Norrish water was being delivered at a rate of four to fi ve million gallons a day. Al now leaves a water system that runs like clockwork and supplies 18 to 20 million gallons a day, with slow sand fi ltration and a soon to be constructed membrane fi ltration plant. Although Al himself deserves recognition for FVRD’s successes in the water supply fi eld, he is quick to give credit by saying that “he was fortunate to have worked with the best water works crews in the province, if not in Canada.” Al resides in Abbotsford with his wife Lillian. He met Lillian in Fredericton N.B. in 1958 and they were married in 1959. They have two adult children, daughter Deborah Leah and son Dana. Enjoy your time on the golf course Al!

Liisa Bloomfield – A passion for BNR

Interested in the wastewater field since a young girl, Liisa Bloomfield knows her calling and continues to go for it! Wastewater treatment was a common topic of conversation over many dinners while growing up, as her father, Tim Forty, P.Eng., is also in the wastewater industry.

Liisa graduated from the University of British Columbia in 1998 with a Bachelor of Applied Science Degree in Bioresource Engineering. Although she studied a diverse set of courses, much of her studies revolved around the aspects of Biological Nutrient Removal Systems (BNR), and that became her passion. Her undergraduate thesis involved research at the Westside Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant in the summer of 1997. From 1998 until 2000, Liisa worked on her Masters of Applied Science Degree, but was unable to complete it at the time due to a pleasant event – Liisa and her husband Jason welcomed their daughter Hannah in September of 2000.

Liisa is currently working at the Westside Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (WRWTP) in Westbank, BC for the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The WRWTP is a biological nutrient removal plant that has experienced increasing process problems over the years, mainly as a result of escalating flows and loading (organic and nutrient) from accelerated population growth. She examines past problems and all the parameters involved, determining why the process troubles occurred and becoming familiar with the warning signs. She sets up guidelines for particular situations and makes recommendations for changing settings and operation for various plant processes. Liisa gives credit to her father, as she has learned from his vast knowledge and experience. What was once a dinnertime conversation with her father as a young girl continues to be a topic of conversation in her household. Liisa Bloomfield

Jack M. Vanderwood – All in a day’s work

By Dena Paige

Aged 87, Jack M.Vanderwood of Okanagan Center, BC may well be the oldest person in BC operating a domestic water system that supplies water to nearly 400 homes. He recently took the BCWWA small water systems course. I first came to know of Jack after hearing that he had successfully completed the Water Distribution Level 2 course in the Okanagan. He is an amazing fellow with a wealth of knowledge and a zest for life. He enjoys writing on a variety of subjects, but is driven to educate anyone who will listen about health and well-being. A letter he wrote to the BCWWA thanking the teacher (Mr. E.H. Johnson) and the BCWWA for offering such a great course came to my attention. I then contacted Jack and was so taken by his enthusiasm that I have to tell his story.

Jack immigrated to Kelowna from Holland in the spring of 1957. He investigated hours of sunshine and monthly precipitation for several locations in Canada and compared these with the figures for Holland. Kelowna came out the winner with 50 percent more sunshine and one third less rain. He did not immigrate for the money, he did it because he was looking for a good place to live. He was a workaholic, so he was confident he would be able to find work. He worked at first for a gas pipeline company in Kelowna called Dutton & Williams, and then for the Kelowna bridge contractors as the floating bridge was being built. From there, he moved on to work for various insurance companies such as the Fruit Growers Insurance Company. After studying Real Estate Sales, he started up Kelowna Realty Ltd. with partner Robert Baily. He followed this with a building company constructing homes, and later became a land developer. Jack waited until he was 65 before slowing down slightly and focusing on supplying domestic water.

Jack established Alto Utilities in 1970 and has managed the company ever since. Alto Utilities operates a small water system in an area called “Clearwater Park subdivision” within the Lake Country Municipality. Clearwater Park consists of 380 residential homes and one school. When Jack started with Alto in 1970, it was part of the Central Okanagan Regional District “Area A.” Later, it became Winfield, and then incorporated as part of the Municipality of Lake Country.

Jack has been running Alto Utility for 33 years. The water source originally consisted of two deep wells. Recently, it drilled another and now has the capacity to serve additional customers in the future. When a home needs to be connected, the connection is performed by Art Robertson under the direction of Jack. In the case of a break in one of the waterlines, Jack discusses with the client the work required for the repair and Art Robertson repairs the leak.

Every Monday morning at 9:30, Jack visits the two pump stations at the Upper Pump House and records the hours of pumping and the reservoir levels in the tanks. He performs lamp tests on the pumps, checks if the motor drips, does any other required maintenance, and records all the information required. Then the Lower Pump House is checked and a similar routine is followed. This is all being done while Jack is at the age of 87. At home, he has a state-of-the-art computer system which continually monitors the operation of the various system pumps and the level of water in the tanks. He uses his computer technology daily and hasn’t seen his typewriter for years.

A new era of health protection

By Doug Dolan, Chair, Cross Connection Control Committee

In February 2003, a new standard for the protection of drinking water begins in the Interior Health Region. Twenty-seven water systems will begin to adopt and administer cross connection control programs under the watchful eye and guidance of the Interior Health Authority (IHA). This is a first for the province of British Columbia and, in the opinion of many, this protection of drinking water is long overdue.

Operators in the 27 areas are issued a ‘Permit to Operate’ from the IHA. Several conditions are contained within this permit, one of which is to provide a cross connection control program. The IHA, because of the complexities of initiating and maintaining a cross connection control program, decided to assist those purveyors facing the new conditions in the Operators Permit through two one-day workshops. The workshops we held in January in Kelowna and Penticton.

The goal of these workshops was to provide information on the requirements of the Drinking Water Quality Program, including the cross connection control program. Attendance was excellent and made up of purveyors and representatives of all 27 water systems within the South Okanagan.

The sessions covered a range of CCC related topics. Ron Johnston, Public Health Engineer with the IHA, spoke on the health aspects of the cross control program. Ron Labossiere, a lawyer with Labossiere and Co in Kelowna, covered the legal aspects of the program. Don Degen, Water Manager with the City of Kelowna, addressed the administrative aspects of a CCC program, while Cameron Moody, CCC coordinator for the City of Kelowna, talked about the development and day-to-day operation of a successful program. I, as Chair of the Cross Connection Committee and CCC Coordinator for the City of Coquitlam, presented the development of bylaws and current code requirements.

Response to these sessions was very positive. It is always difficult to present such a broad range of topics in such a short time. I would like to thank the sponsors of the sessions: The British Columbia Water and Waste Association/ Cross Connection Control Committee; the City of Kelowna; and the Water Supply Association of BC. I would also like to acknowledge three people who made the event happen; Christine Quinlan and Ron Johnston of IHA and Cameron Moody of the City of Kelowna. I would also like to thank someone who remains incognito to some degree but may just be the catalyst for this all, Dr. Bill. Thanks.

What the IHA has started in these 27 systems is a good thing. It may just be the single most important condition on an operator’s permit. It is something for which the CCC committee has been lobbying the provincial government for some time.