Download and read the latest Operator Certification Bulletin, the Drinking Water and Wastewater Operator Certification News. (Click HERE).

Attention Wastewater Treatment Examinees: 

Class II and III wastewater treatment examinations are now available for registration. Please visit our Examination Schedule page for details on exam locations and dates.

UPDATED (July 29, 2011): Attention Wastewater Treatment Examinees:

Class I Wastewater Treatment examinations are now available for registration.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Class II and Class III Wastewater Treatment examinations will NOT be available until October 1, 2011. Operators who have registered to write these exams will be notified and given priority to reschedule an examination at a later date. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you. All other exams will still be available. Please visit this site for updates on the resumption of the Class II and III Wastewater Treatment examinations.

Attention Wastewater Treatment Examinees:

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Class I and III Wastewater Treatment examinations will NOT be available until October 1, 2011. Operators who have registered to write these exams will be notified and given priority to reschedule an examination at a later date. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you.  All other exams will still be available.   Please visit this site for updates on the resumption of the Class I and III Wastewater Treatment examinations.

Postal Strike: Effective immediately, OWWCO has implemented the following measures which will continue to be in place until postal service resumes:  

·         To ensure we receive your applications for certificates/licenses (upgrade, renewals and OIT) and exams on time, we encourage submission by fax or email, with payment by credit card. Where credit card payment is not possible, please arrange for your application to be couriered or hand delivered to our office during regular business hours. Please be reminded that it is your responsibility to ensure that your certificate(s)/licence(s) are renewed on time. 

·         Operator certificates and licenses will continue to be processed. We will retain all certificates, exam result letters and receipts until postal services have resumed.  

·         A listing of all valid operator certificates and licenses is available on the main page of our website and may be accessed by clicking on the Operator Listing Report link. This report is a comprehensive record of legally certified and licensed drinking water and wastewater operators in Ontario, and should be used to verify operator certification. 

·         If you have not received documents you were expecting, which may have been mailed prior to the strike, and if you have not been contacted by our office regarding your application(s), please call our customer service desk at (416) 231-2100 or email us at info@owwco.ca to follow up. 

·         Examination sessions will continue as per the schedule on our website.
 

Download and read the latest Operator Certification Bulletin, the Drinking Water and Wastewater Operator Certification News. (Click HERE).

New Wastewater Collection Exams are Coming Soon

Over the next two to three years, Ontario’s wastewater collection and treatment exams will change. Ontario will be adopting the Canadian Standardized Operator Certification exams, which are currently used in most provinces. This change will ensure greater standardization of exams across Canada.

The wastewater collection exams are the first series of exams to be changed in April 2011. Wastewater treatment and drinking water exams will follow next year.

How are operator certification exams developed?

A lot of work goes into developing operator certification exams. Fortunately, Ontario and other North American certification programs are supported by the Association of Boards of Certification (ABC), a non-profit association of states and provinces dedicated to advancing operator certification. In summary, here’s what’s involved:

• Tasks an operator performs are analysed to determine how many and what type of questions are required on each exam.

• Next, with the help of senior operators across North America, ABC develops exam questions.

• The difficulty level of each question is assessed so that Class I-IV exams reflect the knowledge that’s required for each class. Exam questions are then reviewed and tested before they’re released.

• In Ontario, questions supplied by ABC are further reviewed by teams of Ontario operators to ensure they meet Ontario’s regulatory requirements, reflect technologies used in Ontario, and that English spelling and metric units are used.

• Finally, 100 questions are chosen, which make up each class of exam.  

But the process doesn’t end there. After a new exam is used, the teams of Ontario operators and ABC analyse the performance of questions. Based on this analysis and comments from operators, any ineffective questions will be further edited or removed.  

Although actual exam questions will be changed, it’s important to note that the overall content and difficulty level of the exams will not. To accurately reflect the content of the new exams, a new Need-to-Know document for the Wastewater Collection exams has been posted at www.owwco.ca.  

Why is Ontario changing the exams?

In addition to standardizing exams across Canada, changing these exams also allows each province, with the support of exam experts at ABC, to pool their resources and develop the best exams possible. This change is expected to improve how we ensure that our exams continue to be effective and relevant in the years to come.  

The Association of Boards of Certification (ABC) is seeking volunteers to complete an on-line job task analysis survey. ABC is a North American organization which provides operator certification testing services to all provinces and most states who have operator certification programs. This survey identifies the duties typically performed by operators and will establish the blueprint for future ABC examinations. In Ontario, operator certification exam questions are developed by ABC and modified to be specific to Ontario regulations, terminology, metric system and technology used. By participating in the survey you will help keep ABC and Ontario exam questions relevant and up to date. To participate in the survey visit the following sites:

Water Treatment: www.surveymonkey.com/s/ABCwto
Distribution: www.surveymonkey.com/s/ABCwdo
Wastewater Treatment: www.surveymonkey.com/s/ABCwwto
Collection: www.surveymonkey.com/s/ABCwwco

Download and read the latest Operator Certification Bulletin, the Drinking Water and Wastewater Operator Certification News. (Click HERE).