News

It is with great sadness we announce the passing of member Mike Froese. 

Mike was a Utilities Maintenance worker who has worked for the City of Winkler for the past 15 years. Mike had a great relationship with those he worked with. We wanted to offer our deepest condolences to the City of Winkler Utilities Department as we know they are a tight bunch. 

We also send our thoughts and prayers to Mike’s family and all City of Winkler staff. 

Open call for Interview participants in research about the performance of sewage lagoons in Canada.

A PhD student (Maame Addai) from Queen’s University is researching the influence of operations and management, and regulations on the performance of sewage lagoons. She is inviting participants whose job description or have experience with sewage lagoons for an interview over the phone or online (Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams). 

If you or someone you know is interested in being interviewed or requires more information, please feel free to contact the student at email 17mka2@queensu.ca) or cell phone number 343-333-7477 (call or text). 

The study has been reviewed and received ethics clearance through the Queen’s University General Research Ethics Board 

Student Bursary Applications are now available to all Members. Please download the application for your child by logging into your account and then going to Members Only Content. 

Applications are due by June 13, 2022. 

The path towards holistic water management OWA is a holistic approach that integrates drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater into one entity, accounting for all water resources, rivers, lakes, and groundwater together at a river basin level. Read More Sponsored: Helping municipalities mitigate flood risk and protect their communities As the changing climate brings more unpredictability to municipal planning efforts…municipalities need robust and reliable tools that can help them mitigate risks and protect their communities from water-related catastrophes. Read More Sponsored: Permeable paving: Stormwater management for the future ECORASTER® permeable paving is designed not to pave over surfaces, but to become a part of them. The porous surface of each tile allows stormwater and water from thawing snow to seep back into the ground rather than running off. Read More Water projects FN communities Minister of Indigenous Services launched a call for proposals for projects that address the retention, recruitment, and availability of water and wastewater operators working on reserve. Read More Cape Breton gets marine support Invest Nova Scotia is supporting the modernization of the Université Sainte-Anne Marine Research Centre to help strengthen and grow the province’s marine and aquaculture sector. Read More 100% water score for Barrie “This perfect score for our drinking water is a reflection of the diligence and the hard-work of the staff in our Water Operations Branch.” Read More WWF reports waste in waters WWF-Canada’s National Vessel Dumping Assessment reveals dumping of billions of litres of waste each year. Read More Events Mar. 10 Women + Rural Water Security Around the World (Virtual) Mar. 21 + Mar. 22 Global Lessons for Safe Drinking Water Through Quality Management (Virtual) Mar. 22 What’s Beneath Our Feet? All About Groundwater (Virtual) Mar. 23 Blue Economy: Implementing Green Infrastructure (Virtual) Mar. 27-Apr. 2 17th IWA Leading Edge Conference on Water and Wastewater Technologies (Reno, Nevada) Apr. 20 Blue Economy: Protecting Our Water Source (Virtual) Apr. 20-22 EnviroTech 2022 (Calgary)

Save the Date

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Lake Winnipeg Basin Office invites you to attend this virtual information sharing webinar featuring talks from two research projects funded by the Lake Winnipeg Basin Program.

Join us for this webinar featuring projects by InnoVantage Inc. on municipal wastewater lagoon monitoring and by Native Plant Solutions on phosphorus retention in conventional and naturalized storm water ponds.

Date: Wednesday, March 9^th, 2022
Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 a.m., Central Standard Time (Chicago, GMT-06:00)

This webinar is part of an ongoing series of information sharing events related to nutrient reduction efforts in the Lake Winnipeg Basin. Please feel free to share this invitation and the MS Teams link below with others that might be interested. There is no need to register and there is no fee to attend.

Presentation abstracts:

Analysis of variance of phosphorus in lagoons discharge during the discharge period in Manitoba.

Gavin van der Linde and Arman Vahedi, InnoVantage Inc 

In 2021 we conducted a pilot project and monitoring study on a number of municipal lagoons in southern Manitoba. The pilot project was to develop an affordable, efficient phosphorus removal system for municipal lagoons. During the research portion of the project, we monitored 14 different municipal lagoon cells, testing the phosphorus levels 6 times during the discharge period. The aim of the study was to see how the phosphorus levels varied over the discharge period. The lagoons were further classified according to how they treated phosphorus.

Phosphorus retention in conventional and naturalized stormwater ponds within the Lake Winnipeg Basin.

Bruce Friesen-Pankratz, Nicholson Jeke, and Lisette Ross, Native Plant Solutions, Ducks Unlimited Canada.

Phosphorus retention within stormwater ponds is largely determined by the extent of their emergent vegetation cover. Conventional stormwater ponds (CSPs) do not have extensive emergent vegetation zones due to their steep slopes and deep water. Conversely, naturalized stormwater ponds (NSPs) are designed to support extensive emergent vegetation. While NSPs as Best Management Practices for stormwater management are now required within some Lake Winnipeg Basin jurisdictions few studies of their ability to retain phosphorus have been completed. Our study compared total phosphorus concentrations in the surface water of 8 CSPs and 8 NSPs in Winnipeg during the 2021 open water season (June through November).

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Microsoft Teams meeting

Join on your computer or mobile app

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+1 204-800-2543,,248542955#   Canada, Winnipeg

Phone Conference ID: 248 542 955#

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Save the Date

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Lake Winnipeg Basin Program invites you to attend this virtual information sharing webinar featuring talks from three projects, focused on Indigenous engagement, that received funding from the Lake Winnipeg Basin Program.

Join our presenters, along with community members, for a webinar featuring their projects.

Lucas King, Grand Council Treaty #3 – Developing a Treaty #3 Watershed Management Program to guide the implementation of strategies to protect water in each of the 28 regions of Treaty #3 Territory.

Daniel Kanu, Lake Winnipeg Indigenous Collective (LWIC) – Building LWIC's capacity to address community concerns and share knowledge; strengthen collaboration between First Nation governments; and ensure Indigenous perspectives are represented and respected in decision-making and management processes to improve Lake Winnipeg's water quality.

Lori Bradford, University of Saskatchewan –- Supporting Indigenous groups in Saskatchewan to: engage in meaningful and reconciliatory watershed-scale conversations about nutrient management, contribute to collaborative governance across watersheds on nutrient issues, and enhance Indigenous engagement on nutrient issues in Treaty 4, 5 and 6.

Date: Monday, March 14th, 2022
Time: 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm, Central Daylight Time

This webinar is part of an ongoing series of information sharing events related to nutrient reduction efforts in the Lake Winnipeg Basin. Please feel free to share this invitation and the MS Teams link below with others that might be interested. There is no need to register and there is no fee to attend.

________________________________________________________________________________

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join on your computer or mobile app

Click here to join the meeting

Or call in (audio only)

+1 204-800-2543,,526496490#   Canada, Winnipeg

Phone Conference ID: 526 496 490#

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It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of long time MWWA member Wayne Wall.  

Wayne was Past Chairman and Honorary Life Member of the Manitoba Water and Wastewater Association, Past President and Honorary Life Member of the Western Canada Water Association and was on the Manitoba Certification Advisory Committee for Water and Wastewater Operators since 2011, and was Chairman from 2014-2021. In 2013, he was the vice-chair of the Provincial Advisory Committee for the Water and Wastewater Technician Trade and was instrumental in the development of this recognized trade in Manitoba.

Wayne received several awards for his contribution to the Water industry including the

Wayne was employed by the City of Portage la Prairie from 1994 until 2012, when he retired from his position as Manager of the Water Pollution Control Facility.  After his retirement Wayne continued to support Portage la Prairie serving on City Council after being elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2018. 

Wayne will be deeply missed by all of us at the MWWA, his friends and his colleagues. 

The MWWA wishes to extend our deepest sympathies to Wayne’s family.

Hello,

This is a follow-up on proposed amendments to the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations (WSER).

We published a Discussion document outlining the regulatory proposal online for a 90-day public comment period on December 6, 2021. We are inviting feedback and perspectives by March 5, 2022. Suggestions and ideas collected during the consultation phase will inform the proposed regulations.

We have been hosting a series of virtual consultation sessions to discuss the proposed amendments, answer questions and receive feedback. Our last session is scheduled for March 1, 2022 at 1:30pm EST.

To review the Discussion document, provide feedback, and register for the virtual consultation session, please visit our webpage using the following link: Consultations on wastewater - Canada.ca.

Should you have any questions during the consultation process, please contact us.

Regards,

 

Wastewater Program
Environment and Climate Change Canada/ Government of Canada

eu-ww@ec.gc.ca  / Tel: 819-420-7727 / Fax: 819-420-7384

 It is with deep sorrow that we announce that our friend and colleague, Glen Robertson passed away on January 22, 2022.

Glen was one of the original Drinking Water Officers since the Office’s inception, and looked after the City of Brandon as well as many other water systems in the Westman area.  Glen was a great resource for many operators and will be sorely missed.  Glen's obituary can be found at: Obituary for Glen Robertson | McKenzie's Portage Funeral Chapel (mckenziesportagefuneralchapel.com)

It is with heavy hearts that we say goodbye to a friend, colleague, and mentor Dale Scott.

Dale worked in the Manitoba water industry for over 4 decades in numerous different roles and for numerous different organizations. He may be most noted as working for the City of Selkirk for 17 years where he implemented numerous projects and efficiencies.

Dale was a very active member of the MWWA and sat on the Board of Directors for 9 years.  He started on the Executive as 2^nd Vice Chair in 2007, moved to Vice Chair in 2009, and was the Chair of the Association from 2011 – 2013. He was the recipient of the MWWA Lorne Sayer Award in 2015. The Lorne Sayer award is presented to an individual in recognition for faithful and meritorious service to Water and Wastewater industry.

Dale worked with ABC to help develop the standardized tests for all operators in numerous different categories (WWC, WD, WWT and WT).

Dale always was firm on ensuring that operators in Manitoba were thought about and ensured that the smaller systems did not get ignored. He always kept things interesting and lived by the motto; Make sure to leave it better than you found it!

The Board of the MWWA sends its deepest sympathy to Dales family, friends and colleagues; He will be profoundly missed.