2021
Environment and Climate Change
Jim Pollett, Paula Dawe, Gerry Lahey, Deneen Spracklin, Darren Patey, Genny DeCoste, Premier Furey, Clerk of the Executive Council, Krista Quinlan, Chris Blanchard
The Community Water and Wastewater Team has been instrumental in ensuring that communities in the province have updated and effective water systems.
The team is comprised of seven members: Chris Blanchard, Paula Dawe, Genny DeCoste, Gerry Lahey, Darren Patey, Jim Pollett and Deneen Spracklin. They work with 365 communities to train operators, ensure the systems are safe, hold annual workshops and deliver programs.
The hands-on operating training program created by the team is the first of its kind in North America. Since 2002, the number of trained operators to go through the program has grown from 66 to 550.
Their work has resulted in the reduction of the number of of Boil Water Advisories in the province to an all-time low in recent years. They achieved this by hosting one-on-one mentorship sessions, infrastructure assessments and the development of other capacity building tools.
During the pandemic, this team delivered an operational wastewater surveillance program for COVID-19 from scratch. The program helped detect the virus in the broader population for early detection of outbreaks, trend monitoring and to help inform public health decisions.
The combined technical and operational knowledge of the members on the team have helped educate the water system operators in the province. As a result, there is a stronger confidence and reliability in the quality of water systems throughout the province.
By maximizing the return on municipal water and wastewater systems, the members of the Community Water and Wastewater Team have enhanced the sustainability of infrastructure and the lifespan of the systems for years to come.