HOME SEARCH
A bi-monthly magazine covering the environmental protection and drinking water industry since 1988

March 2002 Edition The Low Bid Ethos (LBE) has become an acronym for lethality Twin problems affecting the environment industry are poor media coverage and the low bid ethos. They are intimately related as the news media usually ignores the real experts when environmental problems surface. Instead, reporters often seek technical information from people who, by law, would not be allowed to operate treatment plants. The exceptions are grandfathered operators made famous by the Koebel brothers in Walkerton, Ontario. Usually epidemiology is defined by acronyms such as TB, AIDs or more recently, BSE, the acronym for Mad Cow disease. Sometime ago I thought the way consultants were retained, or equipment was procured, deserved its own acronym. To define and identify the maladies which plague the environmental industry I decided a new short form was needed for low bid ethos. I thought we needed an acronym like the debilitating diseases, after seeing cases where the lowest bid repeatedly won over quality for consulting engineering, equipment and laboratory services; so LBE was born. See Tom's full commentary Also in this issue: Industry Update Construction started on new Georgina drinking water treatment facility Ammonia removal in northern sewage treatment lagoons Automation and information management for today's water and wastewater treatment Biological iron and manganese removal as a viable alternative for groundwater treatment Recycling gypsum and concrete, using pumps and mixers Victoria's strategy when facing the drought Maximizing the use of data for better environmental decision-making Successful use of ozone for drinking water treatment in Windsor, Ontario Beneficial reuse of biosolids -- A public/private partnership Urban air pollution linked to birth defects for first time in US studies China uses barge for wastewater treatment Was President Eisenhower the godfather of the Ontario Ministry of Environment? WEAO Technical Symposium and OPCEA Exhibition 2002

Victoria's strategy when facing the drought During 2001, there was a severe water shortage in Victoria's Capital Regional District (CRD); this was a situation unlike anything the region had previously experienced. The CRD Water Department is responsible for the supply, treatment and delivery of bulk drinking water to the greater Victoria area, the second largest municipal water system in BC. These combined municipalities represent a population of about 315,000 people. Victoria is also renowned as the City of Gardens. Click here to see the full article. - COMING SOON - Watch for the report on Environmental Management, Compliance and Engineering 2002 and make your plans for 2003 Equipment Specifiers' Guide Spotlight On: Environmental Consultants Quick-Link: print edition advertisers Comments? send them to the editor.

All rights reserved. Copyright © Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine. Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine will not be responsible for third party material.