Newly Revised Certification Program Offers More
New changes to the Certified Professional in Storm Water Quality program make it more relevant than ever to the entire field of stormwater quality management, while enhancing its value to registrants.
The scope of the program has been broadened to better address the interests and qualifications of professionals involved with preventing water pollution caused by construction activities, as well as the interests of those working in the two other major areas that affect stormwater quality: municipal operations and industrial processes.
These revisions are part of a recently completed updating of all aspects of the CPSWQ program to keep pace with changes in the science and technology of managing water quality and related federal regulations.
“Now the CPSWQ certification exemplifies a more rounded professional who knows not only the details of specific water-quality protection requirements and practices but who also understands how the water-quality aspects of construction, municipal, and industrial activities combine to form the big picture of stormwater management,” says Jennifer Guigliano, CPSWQ, CPESC, CESSWI.
A project director and associate principal with AECOM, an international, full-service environmental, architectural, engineering, and landscape design firm based in San Diego, CA, she is technical vice chair of the CPSWQ Council. Guigliano and the other 11 members have spent the past two years revising the CPSWQ program.
“Credit is due to everyone on the council-all volunteers-who have led or contributed to the process at different times,” she says. “The revision has been a long time coming, but we wanted to make sure we had it right-that the CPSWQ designation truly represents the highest degree of credibility in terms of the qualifications and expertise of registrants.”
A Detailed Process
The council members, who represent a wide range of water-quality expertise, began their work by developing the Scope of Practice, which defines the technical areas covered by the certification
“In effect, this two-page document describes the capabilities of a CPSWQ,” explains Jonathan Smith, CPSWQ, engineering manager of stormwater services with Tetra Tech, Research Triangle Park, NC, who chairs the council. “It provided a template that we used to decide what to include in our revisions.”
Among those decisions was one to give more attention to municipal stormwater management issues. “The program covered this area before, but we wanted to provide a broader and deeper perspective,” Smith says.
The council members delved into all aspects of the certification process. They evaluated and revised, as needed, each area covered by the certification review course and manual and the written exam. These included rules and regulations, watershed hydrology, impacts of water pollutants, methods of removing pollutants, and stormwater management practices for urbanizing areas. Their efforts extended to such details as the selection of individual slides used in the review course, PowerPoint presentation, and writing exam questions.
Current and Comprehensive
One of the council members who took part in this process was Andrew Wright, CPSWQ. He’s a civil engineer with the Buehrer Group of Maumee, OH, and is in charge of site development for the architectural and engineering firm’s projects. “While the course and exam covered these areas before, the revisions provide more in-depth information,” he says
Among other things, this includes pollutant removal and transport. “For example, we now spend more time on the role of plants in these processes and how vegetative systems work to remove pollutants” says Smith.
Council member Jeret Elwell, CPSWQ, appreciates the need to update this and other types of information presented in the review course and exam. An environmental project manager with DES Consultants in Peachtree City, GA, he became CPSWQ-certified in 2008. “Some of the stormwater practices have already changed since then,” he says. “Regulations dealing with the pollutant removal requirements are also continuing to develop nationwide. We’ve included these and other types of recent developments in the revised program.”
“The review course and exam have always been comprehensive,” adds council member Mickey Marcus, CPSWQ, a wetland scientist with New England Environmental Inc. of Amhearst, MA, which provides stormwater management and wetland restoration and mitigation services. “But, our revision gives the program a new look and approach. For example, we’ve included more detailed explanations of how various types of technologies work and where they are appropriate. We wanted to make sure that the candidates who pass the exam have the high degree of subject competency needed to practice effectively in this field today.
“Also, we spent a lot of time reviewing the code of conduct and ethics to make sure that it emphasizes the obligations of registrants to do their work in a very honorable and highly professional manner.”
The CPSWQ certification program is one of four certification programs in the areas of erosion and sediment control and stormwater management offered by EnviroCert International Inc. More information is available from the organization by phone at 828-655-1600, or online at www.envirocertintl.org.