NON-REGULATORY CERTIFICATION CHANGES 2020 – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

• Code of Conduct

• Collection System Operator (.pdf 105K)

• Collection System Operator (.doc 226K)

• Restricted - Collection System Operator (pdf)

• Industrial Waste Inspector (.pdf 100K)

• Industrial Waste Inspector (.doc 213K)

• Restricted - Industrial Waste Inspector .pdf)

• Industrial Waste Operator (.pdf 101K)

• Restricted - Industrial Waste Operator (.pdf)

• Plant Maintenance Technologist (.pdf 101K)

• Plant Maintenance Technologist (.doc 216K)

• Restricted - Plant Maintenance Technologist (.pdf 101K)

• Wastewater Replacement or Duplicate Certificate (.doc 19K)

• Replacement or Duplicate Certificate (.doc 37K)

• Wastewater Quality Analyst (.pdf 100K)

• Wastewater Quality Analyst (.doc 213K)

• Restricted - Wastewater Quality Analyst (.pdf)

• Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator (.pdf 102K)

• Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator (.doc 187K)

• Restricted Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator (.pdf 102K)

• Restricted Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator (.doc 187K)

• “Incomplete applications awaiting additional information and/or documentation will be forfeited after 90 days, upon which the candidate will need to submit a new application and fee”.

• If you are applying for certification or reciprocity in Nevada, you must meet all of Nevada’s eligibility requirements for the level of certification you are seeking.

Renewal of Nevada Wastewater Certification (.pdf 69K)

Renewal of Nevada Wastewater Certification (.doc 43K)

Renewal of Non Regulatory Certification (.pdf 83K)

Renewal of Non Regulatory Certification (.doc 44K)

RECIPROCITY APPLICATIONS

Wastewater Restricted Upgrade Form PDF

(AIT) WATER QUALITY ANALYST PDF

(COIT) COLLECTION SYSTEMS OPERATOR PDF

(IWIIT) INDUSTRIAL WASTE INSPECTOR PDF

(IWOT-B) INDUSTRIAL WASTE OPERATOR - BIOLOGICAL PDF

(IWOT-P) INDUSTRIAL WASTE OPERATOR - PHYSICAL/CHEMICAL PDF

(PMTIT) PLANT MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGIST PDF

UPGRADE FORMS AS OF OCTOBER 20, 2020

Continuing Education Approval Application

complete Application, send sample certificate and course approval application list calculated to show total hours that you are requesting approval for. 

• Application for Approval of Course of Training for Continuing Ed. (.pdf 18K)
• Application for Approval of Course of Training for Continuing Ed. (.doc 36K)
• Sample Class Certificate
• Course Approval Application List - Calculated
•  Wastewater Course Approval – Submittal requirements for Trainers

ONCE A COURSE IS ACCEPTED, COURSE APPROVAL IS VALID FOR 3 YEARS FROM THE DATE OF APPROVAL.

IF AVAILABLE PLEASE SEND SIGN IN PAGE FOR CLASS TO CERTIFICATION@NVWEA.ORG

NWEA Award Applications

• Collection System Operator of the Year Application (.pdf)
• Industrial Waste Inspector of the Year Application (.pdf)
• Operator of the Year Application (.pdf)
• Plant Maintenance Technologist of the Year (.pdf)
• Rookie of the Year Application (.pdf)
• Wastewater Quality Analyst of the Year (.pdf)

Operator Certification Regulation Changes – What You Need to Know

NDEP | Wastewater

NDEP E-Payment    Click here for step by step instructions

Operators Forum

NEVADA PUBLIC WATER SYSTEM - OPERATOR CERTIFICATION PROGRAM

Click here for Nevada Drinking Water Certification Program Website

More dates to follow!

What College Courses Count Towards CEUs for Initial Education and Renewals ?
College Courses Earning Full Credit  (1.5 CEUs per semester credit):
College Chemistry - up to 12
Mathematics area: Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Statistics - up to 12 CEUs. Does not include basic, introductory, or business math
Biological Science area: Microbiology, Pathogenic Bacteriology, etc. - up to 9
General Physics - up to 9
College Chemistry - up to 12
Engineering courses: Fluid Mechanics, Hydraulics, and Engineering courses not directly

College Courses Earning Half Credit  (0.7 CEU per semester credit):
Technical Writing - up to 3
Public Speaking - up to 3

Training opportunities - Visit the Events Calendar and the Training section of the website.

What is Wastewater Restricted Certification?
If an examinee takes and passes a grade I exam but does not meet all of the education and/or experience. 
Once the Restricted Operator meets the requirements an upgrade form must be completed and signed by their supervisor.  

What is an Operator-In-Training Certificate?
If an examinee takes and passes a grade I exam but does not meet all of the experience and education requirements they will receive an operator-in-training certification.  To be eligible to receive a grade I certification the applicant must:
Take and pass the grade I certification exam
Have 1 year of full time experience
Submit documentation of 50 hours of related training
Submit a copy of their high school diploma/equivalent
Once the operator-in-training meets the requirements an upgrade form must be completed and signed by their supervisor.  In addition to the upgrade form, the required education documentation must be submitted.

Does Nevada accept reciprocity?
Reciprocity will be considered from applicants holding valid certificates from all certification programs in the United States and Canada.  The applicant must meet all current education and experience requirements.  Upon approval of the applicant’s qualifications, reciprocity will granted one grade lower than the equivalent grade currently held by the applicant, with the exception that if an applicant currently holds the equivalent of a grade one certification that reciprocity will be granted at grade one. *exceptions if you have received the ABC 2017 Standardized exam or greater, then you may be granted reciprocity without going one grade lower. *
The applicant must meet all current education and experience requirements.
Certificates issued by reciprocity will be designated as such.
Applicants who are granted reciprocity one grade lower than they currently hold may obtain certification at the equivalent grade by applying for and passing the certification exam at that grade.

How do I apply to take a computerized exam?
When applying to take a exam  there is a section to mark to take the computer,once your exam applications have been reviewed and approved you will receive an exam approval letter. 
The exam approval letter will provide:
The contact information for the testing service AMP.
Your identification number.
Instructions for applying to take the exam.
You will be assigned a 90 day range of dates.  You can schedule your exam any time during the 90 day period.

Please note that when you contact AMP to schedule your exam you will be asked to pay and additional fee directly to them with a credit card. *This fee covers AMP’s administration costs*

Are you a veteran?
If you have served in the military in any of the MOS’ listed in the US EPA From M.O.S. to J-O-B: A Guide for Applying Military Occupational Specialties (M.O.S) to Civilian Drinking Water and Wastewater Operations you may be eligible to receive additional experience toward your certification.
If your MOS was a US Navy Rating:  Utilitiesman (UT) or US Air Force Specialty Code: 3E4X1 – Water And Fuel Systems Maintenance you may be eligible to receive full credit for the duties that you performed.
This is currently limited to Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator, Collection System Operator and Plant Maintenance Technologist certifications.
Veteran Exam Reimbursement
The Nevada Water Environment Association has been approved through the LACAS program.  Qualifying veterans can now have their certification exam application fees reimbursed by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
If you are a veteran who has taken a certification examination any time after 8/20/13 you may be eligible to have your certification fee reimbursed by the Deparment of Veterans Affairs.  Here is the application to request reimbursement:
Application for LC Reimbursement
The completed applications need to be mailed to the Western Region address located on the second page.

Application for LC Reimbursement

The completed applications need to be mailed to the Western Region address located on the second page.

How many CEU's do I need to renew my certification?
  •  Grade I – 5 contact hours (0.5 CEU)
  •  Grade II – 10 contact hours (1.0 CEU)
  •  Grade III – 15 contact hours (1.5 CEU)
  •  Grade IV/V – 20 contact hours (2.0 CEU)

What is the Initial education requirements?

Operators seeking new or upgraded certifications are now required to meet minimum initial education requirements for each grade level, all of which must be wastewater related (as determined by the Certification Board). The education requirements are cumulative and include the previous grade’s education (e.g. Grade IV certification requires the Grade III education requirements plus two additional post-secondary courses). A post-secondary course is a college level course comprised of at least 36 hours of instruction (classroom, correspondence, or online) that the Certification Board deems relevant (i.e. wastewater treatment, chemistry, biology, math, etc).

  •  Grade I – 50 hours
  •  Grade II – 100 hours
  •  Grade III – 100 hours and two postsecondary courses
  •  Grade IV – 100 hours and four postsecondary courses

What are the Plant Classifications?
The NAC plant classification table was revised as part of the regulation change. The updated table more accurately reflects relevant treatment technology for each operator certification grade, and is less reflective of flow. The majority of facilities in the state will maintain their existing plant classification.

Below you will find a link to the most recent Nevada Board of Certification for Wastewater Treatment Plant Operators Policy & Procedures Manual. In it you will read about some of these important policies:

POLICY AND PROCEDURES - COMPLETE

If you are applying for certification or reciprocity in Nevada, you must meet all of Nevada’s eligibility requirements for the level of certification you are seeking.

Except as otherwise noted, the policies & procedures contained herein apply to all certification disciplines administered by the Nevada Water Environment Association.

Policy and Procedures is currently not available as we are updating to meet the new regulations until then please see: Interim Certification Policy for NAC Revision Implementation

RULES

• Collection System Operator Rules (.pdf 124K) 
• Industrial Waste Inspector Rules (.pdf 123K)
• Industrial Waste Operator Rules (.pdf 128K)
• Plant Maintenance Technologist Rules (.pdf 124K)
• Wastewater Quality Analyst Rules (.pdf 129K)
• Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator Rules (.pdf 145K)

all Rules are being updated, for more information please contact certification@nvwea.org

USEFUL LINKS

• ABC Formula & Conversion Table
• ABC need-to-know Criteria
• ABC Professional Operator
• AMP PSI Computer Exam Locations
• Arizona Department of Environmental Quality: Operator Certification
• Association of Boards of Certification
• California State Water Resources Control Board: Operator Certification
• Certification Exam Need-to-Know Criteria
• National Small Flows Clearinghouse
• Nevada Administrative Code 445A, Section 287

  This link will take you to the Nevada Adiminstrative Code (NAC) section that applies to Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator certification.

• Nevada Division of Environmental Protection - Bureau of Safe Drinking Water
• Nevada Division of Environmental Protection - Bureau of Water Pollution Control
• NEVADA Water & Wastewater Operator's Forum
• ROY CEU - Practice Exams
• US EPA From M.O.S. to J-O-B: A Guide for Applying Military Occupational Specialties (M.O.S) to Civilian Drinking Water and Wastewater Operations
• Water Environment Federation
• Water Operator Certification - NDEP
• WaterOperator.ORG
• WEF Manuals
  WEF Skills Builder Exam Quizzes The Water Environment Federation (WEF) is now offering online exam quizzes on wastewater and laboratory topics.  This is a great resource if you are preparing to take a certification exam or simply want to test your knowledge.  Quizzes are available in fundamental, intermediate and advanced categories.  New quizzes are posted every month.
• WEF/ABC/C2EP Collection Systems Operators’ Guide to Preparing for the Certification Examination

  This book is a revision to the 2002 edition of WEF/ABC Collection Systems Operators’ Guide to Preparing for the Certification Examination, which formerly was titled WEF/ABC Certification Study Guide for Collection Systems Personnel (1993). The book was developed by 13 authors based on sectorwide job analyses and six different need-to-know criteria.

• Work For Water