Environmental sciences offer a new certification

Posted Feb 16, 2012 By Michael J Brethour

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EMC News -Belleville - For postsecondary students interested in the bio-sciences and environmental field, Loyalist College has become even more appealing.

The college recently announced that thanks to an approval from the Ontario Ministry of Environment and the Walkerton Clean Water Centre, Loyalist is providing students enrolled in the Environmental Sciences program a chance to qualify for Class 1 certifi-cation pertaining to water treatment practices.

"We look at this as a win, win, for the college, the students and the employer. Bringing this certificate into the waste water management course, allows the students at the end of the course, if they are successful, to apply for and write the level one operator exam," said Dan Holland, dean of the schools of business and management studies, biosciences, and the centre for justice studies at Loyalist College.

Holland noted the certifi cation is a industry must have for anyone working in any water treatment facility.

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 certifi cation 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 certifi cation opportunities outside the college which will lead to more job opportunities in the environmental field," said Professor Rendell in a press release issued by the college. "To do this, I had to retrain 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."

Holland said the desire to have the ability to offer the certification arose well over a year and a half ago, he added, thanks to the drive of Perry DeCola a part-time professor and superintendent of water and waste water treatment with the city of Belleville.

"He really pushed this through and helped us with the application. The Ministry of the Environment was really good with us corresponding back and forth, it really didn't take that long," he said.

Holland said the environmental department is looking forward to a bright future with numbers in registration in the environmental bio sciences area are up, combined with a completely new facility and refurbished laboratories the program is stronger than ever at the college.

Loyalist is one of a dozen community colleges now training and certifying water technicians.

"I can't speak to the pay scale, but the certification certainly allows the students a broader spectrum of employment once they hit the work force," he said. "For those that want to do it, work in that field, now they have it," commented Holland.

For information on applying for admission to Loyalist's Environmental Technician and Technologist programs visit < loyalistcollege.com>.







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