Environmental Science & Engineering - www.esemag.com - November 2002
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Environmental professionals need more volunteers
By Deborah Ross, M.A.Sc., P.Eng.,
Associate of KMK Consultants Limited
It is becoming more and more difficult
to secure the time and enthusiasm
of drinking water and
water environment professionals
for volunteering in activities to enhance
the goals and solidarity of the industry.
In a survey of members of the Water Environment
Association of Ontario
(WEAO) a few years ago, government
liaison was identified as one of the top
priorities by the members. Yet the time
and commitment devoted by environmental
professionals to this cause seems
to have decreased in recent years.
Lately, the promulgation of provincial
policies and regulations that govern
the drinking water and water environment
industry in Ontario has been
more dynamic than it has been in decades.
New policies will have significant
impact on the water and wastewater
industry, and in particular, the roles that
consultants play in supporting municipal
and industrial clients to make any
changes necessary to ensure compliance.
The need for regulatory control on
drinking water, water supply protection,
wastewater treatment and residue and
biosolids management cannot be questioned.
However, we cannot forget that
the current Ontario government has
demonstrated that environmental protection
is not a high priority profile. We
have seen that this ideology influences
the government’s priorities in terms of
new policies, as well as the portion of
the provincial budget dedicated to the
environment and funding available to
municipalities for environmental protection
infrastructure. It is also important
to remember that the voting public and
the government can be strongly influenced
by the media, and most often, by
so-called environmental advocates.
As consultants and other professionals
in this business, we collectively represent
the most knowledgeable group of
individuals dedicated to the protection
of drinking water and the water environment.
Our knowledge and skills are
certainly recognized by the municipal
and industrial sectors, because we are
retained by these sectors for our specialist
skills and applied experience in
evaluating, designing, constructing,
optimizing and assessing the impacts of
infrastructure for the protection of drinking
water and the water environment.
Nevertheless, the Ontario government,
in developing regulations, seldom
seeks technical input resources outside
of its own staff, and in particular, does
not take advantage of the technical expertise
and resources of the consulting
industry.
If we accept that consultants will not
be asked to play a role with the province
in policy development, I believe
that we must take on an alternate role in
influencing government decisions to
ensure that priorities are set that truly
reflect environmental protection and financial
sustainability. This means that
we should advocate policies and
changes to the government's direction
that embody the best interests of the
water environment. We should also demand
sound rationale and full cost/benefit/
risk analyses to support all new
policy developments.
Environmental professionals should
educate their municipal and industrial
clients, so that they can understand and
will speak out on environmental issues
of importance.
Finally, we should educate the public
to promote a scientific rationale
which will mitigate the impacts on public
opinion from some irrational comments
from “environmental advocates.”
To this end, we must rediscover the
time and enthusiasm to work together
to achieve this goal.
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