An Environmental Protection Technician provides professional and technical advice on the implementation and administration of the environmental management acts to manage source wastes and hazardous materials; establishes and maintains strong working relationships as he liaises with stakeholders and partners to provide advice on plans; is relied upon to study the impacts of toxins and wastes on the environment; prepares reports and letters for management and acts as a program representative in meetings; makes recommendations to mitigate pollution and health risks; is responsible for laboratory and fieldwork in water and waste chemistry, microbiological and toxicity testing, soil collection and analysis, conservation, technical sales and materials handling; and more.
These Environmental Protection Technicians work in areas that include: municipal/provincial/federal governments, environmental consulting/management firms, water/wastewater/industrial wastewater treatment operations, environmental and chemical laboratories, and manufacturing and energy production. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Environmental Protection Technician occupation is projected to expand faster through 2018, than other occupations that require post-secondary training or an associate degree.
Centennial College offers an environmental program called Environmental Protection Technician that provides training in the three essential foundation disciplines of biology, chemistry and civil engineering. Additionally, students learn how to use tools and equipment that professionals use in the field, and participate in laboratory practice in water quality testing, groundwater movement and the chemistry of pollutants.
Specific Environmental Protection Technician courses include: Water Quality Control (outlines the characteristics of raw water and waste water, how water supply systems work, sources of supply, methods of treatment, alternative sources of water and methods of distribution); Topographical Surveying (introductory course in field surveying with computation and drawing in which students prepare basic engineering plans, profiles, cross-sections and calculate earthwork volumes, and work outside in "survey crews" to determine elevations, horizontal angles and distance); Chemistry of Pollutants (designed for students to evaluate, define and understand pollution in all its organic and inorganic forms found in air, water and soil); and more.
Once they complete the Environmental Protection Technician program, students obtain an Ontario College Diploma. They are also prepared to write the Ontario Ministry of the Environment Operator in Training (OIT) and Water Quality Analyst (WQA) exams, and can register with the Ontario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologist (OACETT) and ECO Canada for the national Canadian Environmental practitioner in Training (CEPIT). In addition, Environmental Protection Technician program grads can apply credits towards university degrees. Transfer credits/ advanced standing may be awarded for previous science or engineering education.
Applicants to the Environmental Protection Technician program must have completed at minimum an Ontario Secondary School Diploma or equivalent or be 19 years of age or older. They must also possess credits for compulsory English 12C or U or skills assessment, or equivalent and Math 11M or U, or 12C or U or skills assessment, or equivalent.
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