Meet the 2020 Speakers

We have a great line-up of speakers providing their expertise February 6-8^th, 2020 at the Red Deer Cambridge Convention Sheraton, 3310 – 50 Avenue, Red Deer.

A diverse and interesting group of presenters is being gathered to provide delegates with information on regulatory issues, technical innovations, the newest information in research and interesting and innovative projects that are changing the face of decentralized wastewater.

Don’t miss your opportunity to listen, learn and network at this exciting event!

Troy D. Vassos, PhD FEC PEng

Technical Director & Senior Environmental Engineer – Integrated Sustainability Consultants Ltd.

Adjunct Professor – Department of Civil Engineering, University of British Columbia

Water & Wastewater Treatment and Integrated Water Management Specialist

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Troy has a Ph.D. in environmental engineering with over 40 years of experience in water and wastewater treatment process design, regulatory and standards development, technology performance verification, operations support and optimization and effluent disposal and reuse. He is also an expert and advisor in the area of onsite wastewater and integrated water management, water conservation; rainwater harvesting; and water reclamation.

In addition to consulting, Dr. Vassos is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia and is actively involved in the development of wastewater treatment package plant performance standards and design guidelines through national and international organization committees and advisory boards. In addition to design and investigation, his onsite experience includes developing testing standards for package treatment systems including the development of CSA B128.3 – Performance of Residential Non-potable Water Treatment Systems, advisor to Health Canada in the development of the “Canadian Guidelines for Domestic Reclaimed Water for Use in Toilet and Urinal Flushing”; chairing the IAPMO Z1207 Small-Scale Greywater Conservation Systems subcommittee, and most recently a member of the joint CSA/ICC rainwater harvesting standard development committee..

Sustainable Passive Wastewater Treatment

Mechanical wastewater treatment technologies have become increasingly more complex over the past four decades with the primary advancement being able to increase the amount of bacteria present to remove biodegradable organic constituents and minimize the amount of time and size of facility required for treatment (e.g. membrane bioreactor and moving bed biofilm processes); while the target constituents for removal have remained the same, consisting primarily of reducing the concentration of 5-day Carbonaceous Biochemical Oxygen Demand (cBOD₅), Total Suspended Solids (TSS), nitrogen, phosphorus and indicator bacteria. In the same time period passive wastewater treatment technologies such as lagoons and wetlands have fallen out of favour. Common in rural and northern communities, their limited need for operator attention is a “two-edged sword” with respect to the limited ability for operators to be able to optimize treatment and control effluent quality, and water quality can be significantly impacted by cold winter conditions. Further, the recent federal Fisheries Act Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations have imposed cBOD₅ and TSS effluent quality conditions that can be seasonally challenging for conventional passive treatment technologies to achieve year-round. As a consequence, lagoon and wetland systems have fallen out of favour, and the trend is for communities to invest in new advanced wastewater treatment technologies. This paper describes how passive lagoon and wetland treatment systems function and the advantages they have over mechanical treatment processes in terms of lower operating cost and advanced treatment considerations for the removal of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) (e.g. pharmaceuticals, endocrine disruptive chemicals, perfluorinated compounds, metals and man-made nano materials) that would otherwise enter the environment and cause known or suspected adverse ecological and/or human health effects. It also discusses how lagoons and wetland systems are characteristically more sustainable for rural, remote and northern community application, and presents examples of how they can be modified to overcome perceived treatment weaknesses, including the ability to reclaim wastewater for non-potable reuse applications.

Suzan Chin-Taylor

$\"\"$ Suzan Marie Chin-Taylor is the founder of The TUIT Group and CEO of Creative Raven. Ms. Chin-Taylor has over 25 years experience in creating cost-effective, innovative marketing communications solutions to help clients better understand their market, strategically position their organizations, build brand awareness, generate opportunities and develop business alliances.

Suzan is an Everything DiSC Authorized Partner, delivering best-selling Everything DiSC tools that unlock the potential of an organization\’s people, improve working relationships and communication, strengthen management skills, elevate leadership, tackle conflict and create lasting productive and empowering workplace cultures.

Some of her current and past clients include manufacturing firms and contractors serving the water, wastewater and municipal infrastructure industry, specialty healthcare providers, pharmaceutical service firms, wellness and nutritional products manufacturers and organic beauty product companies. Suzan attracts a wide range of clients—from fast track firms that engage her agency as a complete outsource marketing department, to midsize firms that need to fill a gap such as website design and maintenance, to international organizations that need help with a specific project.

Ms. Chin-Taylor holds a BS Degree in Marketing and an MS Degree in Marketing and International Business and is a frequent featured keynote speaker and lecturer on the subjects of website development, social media, content marketing, branding, corporate positioning/repositioning, personal branding and networking, public relations, tradeshow exhibit design and marketing basics.

She was recognized as the 2012 Outstanding Trainer in Community Development by CARAT (California Resources and Training). She is a regular contributor to national and international water/wastewater publications such as Municipal Sewer and Water, Cleaner, TPO, Trenchless Technology, WaterWorld and Public Works. She has been a volunteer instructor for the Coachella Valley Women\’s Business Development Center, served as a marketing consultant to Auburn for Water and is involved in non-profit organizations that support the protection of wildlife and the environment.

Her interests include Bollywood movies, Indian music and culture, classical music, hiking, bird watching and visiting various US and Canadian National Parks.

Ladies & Gentlemen: Create Your Personal Brand and Strategic Network for Success in 5 Easy Steps

This session is designed for seasoned business pros and startups alike. It will cover five key elements for personal branding and creating a circle of influence to build business, useful and mutually beneficial relationships.

Step 1. Company branding: the image, its importance and meaning and how to carry it through all aspects of external and internal communications.

Step 2. Personal branding: the vital extension of the company brand—defining your personal position, your style and how to get out of the comfort zone and build a strong network of business partners, referral sources, talent pools and mentors.

Step 3. Networking: how to work the room, developing the ideal sound byte or 30-second elevator pitch for generating qualified leads and referrals. This portion includes an interactive exercise for all attendees to participate and practice in real time.

Step 4. Keeper Cards: design tips for “keeper cards” and lead follow up and follow through, including when to “let go”.

Step 5. Online Networking and Branding: extending your offline efforts into the virtual professional networking sphere of Linked In, its power and sharing of relevant information to create positive peer perception and gain knowledge.

Participants will walk away with concepts and strategies that they can begin implementing immediately for their business that involve little to no expense other than some time and a willingness to extend a hand in business relationship building.

Hook, Line & Sinker: 3 Essential Online Elements and Activities that Engage, Educate, and Convert

Face it, few people shop the phone book anymore: Your future is on the Web! In this era of social media and digital marketing, a results-oriented online presence is all about effective content. This session is the perfect blend of relevant new media backed by traditional, results-based concepts.

Essential #1: Engaging Website

Learn what you need on your website to actively drive new business. We will cover:

Structure – Requirements for the mobile era and new Google ranking algorithms
Visuals – How you can produce photos that rival professional quality for online use
Navigation – How to develop a user experience that creates credibility and goodwill
Content – What visitors expect from your site’s design, amount and style of copy
Show and Tell – Why actionable, educational content is one of your best friends
Conversion – The one motivating element that turns visitors into customers
Getting interactive – How to match a compelling offer to your online audience
Staying legal on a shoestring – Copyrighted content and avoiding infringement

Essential #2: Understanding Selling In the Digital World

Gain understanding of the rapidly changing face of sales, etiquette and the right approach for using LinkedIn and Digital Marketing to connect with prospects, create relationships and establish your organization as thought-leaders. Take aways include:

Content curation techniques and idea generators
Developing digital and print case studies
Repurposing content and PR items
The LinkedIn profile: what makes a great profile and how to create your own

Essential #3: Building a Network

We will review how to develop word-of-mouth referrals, social media relationships, strategic alliances and profitable co-opetition to leverage skills and circles of influence to generate new opportunities. Participants will leave with tips on how to effectively:

Increase connections and effectively invite new connections
Create messages to begin the conversation and conversion process
Manage the relationship nurturing process and time commitment required

Dave Gustafson, P Eng, University of Minnesota

$\"\"$ Dave Gustafson has run the University of Minnesota On-site Sewage Treatment program for the past 20 years. He is a practicing Professional Engineer licensed in the state of Minnesota. As a private consultant he regularly designs, inspects and troubleshoots systems. He has been recognized as one of the premier on-site instructors due to his ability to combine his on the job experiences with the operating theories behind wastewater treatment systems in his presentations.

The Importance of Your Septic Team

Developing effective and sustainable Onsite Treatment Systems takes more than one Professional to accomplish the job. Identifying the critical activities and the need for teamwork is the only way that our industry can meet the needs of our current and future customers. Helping the industry to take seriously each role for success creates a future that holds little limits.

Landspreading Best Practices

Long-term performance requires system care and solids handling. Understanding the critical factors to properly land applying the solids helps create an environmentally friendly and affordable option for these solids. The loss of this option would create management issues that as an Industry need to be understood.

Ben Kele, Arris Pty Ltd.

$\"\"$ Ben is an on-site wastewater practitioner from Australia who specialises in difficult to treat wastewater. Ben started in academia but has successfully commercialised his research and his company Arris designs, builds, operates and maintains decentralised wastewater treatment and water recycling facilities. Ben’s motto is that any splash you don’t taste is a good splash.

Innovative Solutions for Difficult Sites and Situations

This presentation will focus on some Australian on-site wastewater treatment and dispersal case studies from sites that needed non-standard solutions. Examples will include Australian versions of pressurised mound dispersal systems, Eco-tourism, music festival venues, and a no-release (contained) dispersal technique.

Ernest Cremers

Cremers Safety Ltd.

$\"\"$ Ernest Cremers is the Owner of Cremers Safety Ltd., a safety consultant organization that helps companies across Canada with safety compliance and certification, implementation and management of safety systems and safety training programs.

Ernest has been a safety consultant for 18 years and a contract instructor at the Alberta Construction Safety Association for 8 years, partnering most recently as an instructor nationally with a leading home improvement chain. He is strongly passionate about safety that makes sense, that is applicable at the jobsite level and communicating loss prevention in the area of People, Process and Property. His presentation is about reasonable information that will positively impact your business while ensuring that your bottom line in this economic climate is protected.

Always business-minded, while putting people first, Ernest believes safety is good business no matter how large or small your organization may be.

Safety is Good Business

The cost of a safety incident is more than just lost time and productivity. Being proactive with safety management represents a profit opportunity for your business. We will review ways to increase employee productivity, improve employee morale and accountability, reduce insurance and lost time claims, reduce worker absenteeism and empower your workers to become more creative in their approach to problem solving.

We will break down the 2020 info rate of WCB premiums and how this can vary based on performance. We discuss surcharges and how we can help you take advantage of WCB injury rebate incentives for your business. Having a certifying partner who understands Alberta legislations, your industry and your bottom line, can make all the difference.

Faith Winter, Canplas

$\"\"$ Faith joined the Canplas team immediately after graduating from the University of Toronto with her BSc degree in May 2016. Faith is a well-traveled, trusted advisor who consults with clients in the design community looking for quality information on Commercial Grease Management. However, her educational endeavor does not end with Engineers, Specifiers, and Architects, but extends out to Owners, Developers, City Officials and Contractors across North America. A firm believer in the power of education, Faith is constantly seeking to further her own knowledge of the industry and continues to gain experience that further enhances her teachings.

General Grease Interceptor Overview:

FOG (Fats, Oils, and Grease) is commonly found in the wastewater discharged as a result of commercial and institutional foodservice operations. This course discusses the adverse effects FOG has on the sanitary sewer system, the principles of operation of grease interceptors, and the industry requirements for an effective grease management system in commercial foodservice applications.

Grease Interceptor Maintenance:

This presentation will cover the basic chemistry of the grease interceptor environment to establish why it is necessary to clean these units regularly. From there, we will cover how to set up an appropriate maintenance/cleaning schedule, how to regulate and enforce it and, lastly, best management practices for servicing all types of grease interceptors.

Martin Sparkes, FujiMAC

$\"\"$ Martin Sparkes is the North American importer and distributor of FujiMAC diaphragm air pumps, which are a high-quality wastewater air pump made in Japan.

Martin has been in the wastewater business for 20 years. Most of this time was spent designing and installing wastewater treatment systems in Southern British Columbia with an emphasis on difficult lots requiring aerobic treatment. He sold his design and install business in 2016 to concentrate on selling FujiMAC air pumps.

An Overview of Wastewater Air Pumps

Air pumps are the critical heart of every aerobic treatment system. this talk will be a brief tour of how they work, some tips on best installation practices and how to maximize their lifespan.

Dominic Mercier, Eng. M.A.Sc.

$\"\"$ Dominic Mercier graduated from Laval University in Quebec City in Civil Engineering 20 years ago and having completed a Master Degree in Environmental Engineering from University of Windsor in Ontario , Mr. Mercier has worked mostly in Onsite Water and Wastewater Treatment. He was involved in the development, certification and commercialization of many treatment technologies and designed several hundred septic systems for residential, commercial and communal applications. He is the founder and president of Enviro Neptune Consulting, a small Quebec based firm doing residential and commercial septic designs. More recently he founded Enviro-STEP Technologies, a company developing and distributing simple, affordable, innovative and performing wastewater treatment technologies for the Canadian Onsite industry and is proud to introduce its products in Alberta in 2015.

Results from a study on the degradation of hygienic paper in a septic tank environment

As you probably know, one the biggest challenge septic system faces in the recent years is the premature blockage from hygienic paper not degrading properly in septic tank. This causes back-ups in houses, premature pump-outs of tank and consequently an important financial burden on homeowners.

The presentation will present results and observations from a study conducted in collaboration with Enviro Neptune and Fleming College where several popular brands have been tested for their capacity to degrade in a clean water and wastewater environment. From these observations, the intention was to be able to formulate recommendations to homeowners in order for them to make better decision or simply to understand the potential impacts of the decision they make with regard to selection of toilet paper.

Claude Goguen, PE, LEED AP

National Precast Concrete Association

Troubleshooting Precast Concrete Wastewater Structures

Precast concrete wastewater structures are relied upon to provide a long service life while being watertight, structurally sound and durable. Many of these attributes depend on the manufacturing of the structure, while others rely upon proper assembly, installation and maintenance. During this session, we will examine possible issues during transport, installation, maintenance and use of the precast wastewater structure and discuss how to diagnose the issue, fix it and more importantly, avoid it in the first place.

We will also focus on tank testing and the proper procedures to ensure accurate results. This is great information for those involved in manufacturing, installation, inspection and design of septic systems with precast concrete components.

Shane Sparks, P Geo

SD Consulting Group

$\"\"$ Mr. Sparks is the Principal Hydrogeologist and co-founder of SD Consulting Group. In his 10+ years of consulting experience, he has experience as a project manager for a wide range of sustainable projects that include the design of decentralized water, wastewater and stormwater systems for communities, residential developments, golf courses, and backcountry camp facilities.

With SD, he manages onsite water, environmental, and wastewater projects while performing soils/hydrogeological investigations, water source development, wetland delineation, and other field services related to habitat restoration. Specifically to community wastewater, these services include soils investigations, hydrogeological studies, project meetings, open house presentations and council meetings.

Presentation 1 – “Dump Station Wastewater – Inconsistent flows of high strength waste, what could go wrong?

Wastewater effluent from RV Dump Stations can be inconsistent in flow, but is always high strength (no matter how much water is used in the dumping process). Onsite wastewater systems for RV dump stations need to be designed to handle these high strengths, potential high solid dump events, foaming and other potential issues that are unique to dump stations. Over the last 10 years, SD Consulting has designed wastewater systems for a number of dump stations, but this presentation is focused on our experience with two systems: Bow Valley Provincial Park near K- Country and Spring Hill RV Park near Cochrane. During the design, installation and operation of these facilities, we did a number of things right, but also learned from a number of mistakes. This presentation will focus on these mistakes and how they were ultimately addressed to produce two wastewater treatment facilities that are currently operating at high level. I will discuss strategies for primary storage, treatment technologies and operational approaches that are now standard practice for us on any projects with high strength wastewater.

Presentation 2 – Cold Weather STEP Collection Systems – Design Principles and Project Experience

Over the last ten years, SD Consulting Group has been involved with a number of projects where traditional or gravity sewer systems were not feasible, or desired by Owners. After a review of collection system options, a STEP (Septic Tank Effluent Pump) system has resulted in the most appropriate approach for these projects. Just like all of our projects, we’ve had a lot of things go right in the design and operation of the facility, but also learned from a lot of mistakes. A properly designed STEP system in Alberta should adhere to a number of criteria including safety, odour control, ability to function in extreme cold and require minimal maintenance. This presentation will focus on these design principles as they have played out in a couple of projects: Bow Valley Provincial Park, University of Alberta Botanical Gardens and a few other small systems. I’ll also discuss the use of flow meters in STEP Systems and issues/successes associated with their use.

Charles Hallett, Alberta Safety Codes Authority

$\"\"$ Charles has a Bachelor of Technology in Environmental Health from the University College of Cape Breton. Charles has worked in both the private and public sectors as an Environmental Health Officer with certifications as a Public Health Inspector and a Plumbing Group B Safety Codes Officer. Charles recently joined the Safety Codes Council as the Director of the Alberta Safety Codes Authority (ASCA), which is responsible for providing safety codes services, including inspection and permitting services, in unaccredited municipalities throughout the province.

Photos to Accompany Closed Permits – abstract to come

Trying to address a historical private sewage issue? How can a timely visual inspection of an installation be completed prior to backfilling?

A visual inspection is exactly what it sounds like: a careful, thorough review with the naked eye of every single part of an asset. BUT, how can a safety codes officer provide a timely visual inspection if they have numerous inspections to complete in a day?

They say a picture is worth a thousand words! With the continuing saturation of computer and digital technologies in our society, this presentation will explore the possibility of using photographs to depict that an installation complies with the current Standard of Practice.

Photography as a discipline is both science and art. Although recent advances in digital technologies have made photography easier for the novice, photography is both a technically and aesthetically challenging discipline to master. I hope to encourage some thought about how photography can be included as part of the solution to help address a historical private sewage inspection issue.

Joe Petryk, Alberta Municipal Affairs

$\"\"$ Joe works for Alberta Municipal Affairs – Community & Technical Support – Edmonton – as a Technical Advisor for private sewage systems regulated under the Safety Codes Act.

Joe is a graduate of NAIT, obtaining a diploma in the discipline of Civil Engineering Technology.

Joe has been providing a public service for over 35 years in various roles related to the building and development industry with the past 15 years directly related to the private sewage industry. The private sewage industry continues to evolve on the fronts of code development, installation standards and product development and provides for a very active and interesting relationship with industry stakeholders.

Joe and his wife Gail have recently celebrated their 40^th wedding anniversary and are proud grandparents to 3 grandchildren.

Joe grew up on a farm north of Edmonton and is no stranger to waste management (relocating many an outhouse).

New Process for Variance Approval – abstract to come

Dean Morin, Alberta Municipal Affairs

$\"Dean$ Dean completed an undergraduate degree in Environmental Engineering at the University of Alberta in 2002, which focused on water treatment, wastewater treatment, stormwater management, solid waste management and other environmental concerns. In 2008, Dean completed a Master’s degree in Geoenvironmental Engineering at the University of Alberta. His Master’s research assessed the ability of various sampling technologies in monitoring natural attenuation at upstream oil and gas sites. This degree focused on remediation of contaminants in groundwater and soil environments.

While completing his Master’s, Dean worked with EBA Engineering Consultants Ltd. in their Environmental Group for 3.5 years project managing contaminated site remediation throughout the National Parks, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Dean joined the Private Sewage discipline of Safety Services within Municipal Affairs in January of 2008. Over this time Dean’s focus was to assist Safety Codes Officers and municipalities with technical concerns with respect to private sewage issues. This has involved giving many presentations and meeting with municipal councils, accredited agencies and planners/development officers throughout the province. In late 2016, Dean took over the technical lead for the Province of Alberta by taking on the Provincial Administrator of Private Sewage role under the Safety Codes Act. Since that time he has initiated a number of initiatives that are creating greater accountability with respect to certification, training and competencies in general in the private sewage industry. Much of this effort has been dedicated to building efficient and effective policy in support of these efforts.

The 2020 Standard of Practice – What to Expect.

The Alberta Standard of Practice is reviewed every five years to ensure it is up-to-date with current technologies and to address any areas of concern that have arisen since the previous publication.

A new Standard of Practice is slated for release in late 2020. This presentation will review key changes that designers and installers can anticipate in the newest edition.

Stephanie Munn, P.Ag.

$\"\"$ Stephanie Munn, P.Ag. is a Certified Installer who has been working in the onsite industry for 18 years. She is a system designer and consultant based in the Grande Prairie, Alberta area, where she raises children, chickens and pigs. Over the years, she has designed every type of system in the SOP, except a sand filter. Her designs have ranged in size from small homes to large campgrounds. She enjoys teaching the AOWMA’s Site and Soils Day course in locations all over the province. Her favourite topic of conversation is sewage treatment systems and she gets the chance to do so when presenting the Septic Sense Workshop to rural homeowners on behalf of the AOWMA.

C33 Mound Sand

The presentation will cover:

understanding what the ASTM C33 standard is
how to ask the supplier for this test result when purchasing
which labs to take your own sample to and what test to ask for
reviewing these test results and understanding them
several test results from various supplier around the province will be reviewed and compared
field test (jar test) for fines
samples of the material for which I have test results and have discussed in the presentation will be present as jar tests to pass around during the presentation and compare and discuss.

Sohrabi, Amirreza P. Eng.

$\"\"$ Amirreza Sohrabi is the co-founder and CEO of Roshan Water Solutions. After receiving his PhD in materials engineering from University of Alberta in 2017, Dr. Sohrabi and his wife, Dr. Parmiss Mojir Shaibani decided to found Roshan Water Solutions with one vision: assure safe and clean water while protecting the environment.

Onsite and Rapid Testing for E Coli in Water

For so long, water and wastewater treatment utilities had to rely on laboratory-based procedures for testing their samples for E.coli. These procedures require the transportation of the samples to a well-equipped laboratory; they are labor intensive and take a long time (few days) to report the final results. The transportation step has caused a significant cost for these utilities, especially ones far away from cities. Moreover, occasional resampling is required if the sample properties change during the transportation. The few days delay between sampling and final results causes late and after the fact decision making that can bear serious consequences for the utilities such as the loss of variance. Roshan Water Solutions is pleased to introduce its innovative technology, VeloCens™. VeloCens™ is a handheld device that can be taken to any location for testing samples for E.coli. This eliminates the need for sample transportation and can save a significant amount of money for the utilities. Moreover, the device analyzes samples and shows the final results in 1 hour. This would help utilities to make decisions quickly and avoid non-compliance problems. In a sentence, VeloCens™ enables onsite and rapid testing and quantification of water and wastewater samples for E.coli.

Rick Baxter

The Inspections Group

$\"\"$ Rick Baxter is the Lead Plumbing and Gas Safety Codes Officer with Inspections Group.

He started in the Plumbing trade 25 years ago and became an inspector in 2011. Rick volunteers in many aspects of the industry. He is currently on the Board of Directors for AOWMA and the Alberta Mechanical Officials Society. Rick is also the past-Chair of the Certification Review Committee and continues to sit on the committee as a subject matter expert.

Red Flags on Permitting Documents

What missing or incorrect information should trigger a more detailed look at permit documents? In this discussion, Rick will point out key indicators that the permit and design documents may not meet the requirements of the Standard of Practice and therefore require a deeper examination.

What Should Be in That Permit Package?

Rick will review which documents and information must be included in a Permit Package in order to obtain a permit. Information will be provided on where to access the information and documents to help build a robust permit package.

Dan Thayer

$\"\"$ Manager, Corporate Safety and Environment, Fortis, AB

Dan Thayer is a 34-year employee in the electrical utility industry. His background includes Journeyman Qualified Power Line Technician, Safety Advisor, and Operations Field Manager. Currently Dan is the Manager of Corporate Safety & Environment at Fortis, AB.

Electrical Awareness – Abstract to come

Mona Bartsoff

Chair, JUST Committee

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Mona Bartsoff is a 30-year employee in the electrical utility industry. With a background in Corporate Communications, she is currently the Chair of the JUST committee and an important part of promoting public safety communication for Fortis Alberta.

The Joint Utility Safety Team (JUST) – abstract to come

Jessica Adirika

AOWMA

$\"\"$ Jessica Adirika holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree with a major in accounting and is set to start her Masters Degree in Accounting/CPA designation at the University of Alberta in May 2020. She is currently a Director on the Board of the AOWMA.

Jessica has over 12 years of experience in the onsite wastewater industry. It is through her experience in the industry and in various accounting positions that she discovered her passion for business, accounting and creating efficiencies. This is not limited to reading excel coding books and writing process documents and excel macros.

Jessica and her husband live in Edmonton where they are enthusiastic about maintaining a goal driven healthy lifestyle. A few of her hobbies include reading and travelling.

Cash Money

Accounts receivable are an integral part of analyzing a company’s overall health. It is an asset on the balance sheet used to measure the expected cash money to be received for a good or service.

Cash Money is about all things accounts receivable related including timing, invoicing, and collections tips. It is specifically geared toward small businesses. I hope that you will all come away with practical points that can be applied to your business while gaining some technical insight with regard to accounts receivable analysis.

Bob Boersema

F.B. Boersema Acreage Development

$\"\"$ Bob Boersema was born into the construction and agricultural industries and has worked them with a passion for more than forty years. Growing up in a construction family, Bob learned both building and excavating skills as a young man, first installing septic fields as a teenager.

Bob has run his own construction companies since 1978 and has watched as both the building industry and the excavating industry became more and more technology dependent. He took it on himself to learn computer assisted drafting (CADD) when it was in its infancy because he recognized that it was to be the wave of the future. Designing and building structures gave Bob an appreciation and understanding of many of the Codes involved in the industry, so it was a natural progression, when the 2009 SOP came out, for him to get heavily involved in the design of wastewater treatment systems.

As a designer, Bob was looking for a simple cost-effective advanced treatment unit that would fit the residential market. This led him to Norweco’s Singulair Green. After testing them for a number of years in his own installs, he found they fitted the market so well that he began distributing them throughout Alberta. This led to Bob specializing in designing practical wastewater treatment systems for difficult sites.

Bob has had the privilege of sitting as a Director on the Board of AOWMA for two terms, a learning and enjoyable time.

Pressure Distribution Installation Tips and Tricks

Bob Boersema’s tutorial on Pressure Distribution Installation will explore the practical issues of installing a pressure distribution system. No MATH. Just the fun stuff! Bits of knowledge that will help you understand why pressure distribution raises wastewater treatment to a higher level and little things that should make your next install go easier and quicker.

Bring your questions and let’s see if we can crowd source some answers!

Clayton Foster

Acreage Development Solutions

$\"\"$ Growing up in the septic business, Clayton has seen the industry evolve and change over the past 30+ years. Primarily an installer, his company Acreage Development Solutions also focuses on maintenance, repairs, small jetting and steaming jobs as well as providing vacuum truck services.

Clayton demonstrates passion and dedication to the industry through his time spent working with multiple university studies, public education initiatives and several years as an AOWMA director before becoming President of the AOWMA in 2019.

Update – What Does Continuing Education Look Like for Contractors in Alberta?

With mandatory Continuing Education coming into effect in Alberta, what will the framework look like? How will contractors be able to accrue continuing education credits? Where will contractors be able to obtain credits. How will this impact a contractor\’s ability to maintain their Certificate of Competency?

Ed Lemke

CSWS

$\"\"$ Ed has been involved in the water and sewer industry for 25 yrs. He has worked closely with industry leaders, trying to better himself and better our environment.

Costing Workshop – How to Price Systems for Profit

How do you price systems to be competitive and still make a profit? What do you need to consider when pricing systems? This presentation will review all those factors that drive price and help you to price appropriately to cover your costs and still earn an income.

Tanya Hunter

Alberta Environment & Parks

Tanya’s title is Team Lead for Drinking Water and Wastewater Operator Certification Program. She is a Certified Engineering Technologist with the ASET, and has had a number of different roles through-out her 20 year career since graduating with a Diploma in Water Resources Technology in 2000. She started her career as a Water/Wastewater Operator for a small town in Nova Scotia, moved to Edmonton 13 years ago to focus on Industrial Wastewater Source Control. She transitioned to this role over 4 years ago, and truly enjoys the work she does every day to promote operator certification.

James Bell

Past-President, National On-Site Wastewater Recycling Association (NOWRA)

$\"\"$ James “Jim” Bell, Retired Executive Vice President of Bio-Microbics, holds an M.S. in Sanitary Engineering from the University of Missouri and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Missouri in Rolla, Missouri. Mr. Bell has worked for 35 years as a Process Engineer for Smith & Loveless, Inc. designing wastewater treatment systems. In 2008, he joined Bio-Microbics as Executive Vice-President to provide process engineering and regulatory expertise.

Current membership organizations include:

Mr. Bell is currently the Past President of National On-Site Wastewater Recycling Association, (NOWRA) and the Vice-Chairman of the Joint Committee on Wastewater for the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF), which develops the NSF standards for small onsite wastewater treatment systems. Mr. Bell is also an active member of the Small Community Committee for WEF (Water Environment Federation) and is a member of the Captains of Industry (COI) – an affiliate organization of the State Onsite Regulators Alliance (SORA).

NOWRA –Challenges, Solutions, and Accomplishments

This presentation will provide an update on the past year’s accomplishments for NOWRA. It will also provide the goals and direction for NOWRA in 2020. Included in this presentation will be an update on the Lobbying accomplishments and direction. The presentation will also show how the NOWRA Online Learning can benefit the State’s affiliation with NOWRA. The presenter will also be available to answer any questions on how the NOWRA affiliation is beneficial to the State.

Stay tuned for more speaker profiles, bios and abstracts!

Alberta