GOVERNING
BOARD MEETING
May 20,
2005
1. CALL TO ORDER
Chair
Myron Volker called the meeting to order at 8:13am.
2. ROLL CALL
Position Name Attendance Confirmed
Executive Board of Directors
Chair-elect.................................................. John
Lapointe, Earthtech................. Yes
Chair.......................................................... Myron Volker, Owatonna.................. Yes
Past Chair.................................................. Doug Rovang, Rochester.................. Yes
Director...................................................... Bernie Bullert, St Paul..................... Yes
Secretary/Treasurer..................................... Jon Eaton, Bloomington................... Yes
Assistant Secretary..................................... Dave Brown, PCE............................ Yes
District Trustees
Northwest................................................... Troy Hall, Moorhead........................ Yes
Northeast................................................... Corey Lubovich, Hibbing................... Yes
Central....................................................... Lyle Stai, Wilmar............................ Yes
Metro......................................................... Bert Tracy, Oakdale........................ Yes
Southwest.................................................. Pete Moulton, St Peter.................... Yes
Southeast.................................................. Paul
Halvorson, Rochester............... Yes
At-Large..................................................... Jim Sadler, Maple Grove.................. Yes
Councils and Committees
Administrative............................................. Yasser AbouAish, Minneapolis......... Yes
Conference................................................. David Schultz, MDH........................ Yes
Manufacturers / Associates......................... Jim Norton, SEH............................. Yes
Public Affairs............................................. Kelly Lange-Haider, CH2M Hill.......... No
Training...................................................... Karla Peterson, MDH....................... Yes
Water Utility............................................... Kurt Johnson, TKDA......................... No
Guests:
Director-elect.............................................. Glen Gerads................................... Yes
PAC Representative.................................... Scott Anderson............................... Yes
3. CONSENT REPORT
MINUTES
APPROVAL:
January
26, 2005 – Evening Training Session
January
27, 2005 – Consent Agenda
January
27, 2005 – Board of Directors meeting
Corrections: none noted.
FINANCIAL
REPORT (Eaton)
The
Section income for 2004 was $244,681 and expenses were $198,663 for a net
income of $46,018. Investments were up in 2004 by $12,099.
ASSOCIATION
DIRECTOR'S REPORT (Bullert)
There
has not been a lot of activity since the last meeting but I will highlight what
is happening.
·
The MTBE issue is still out there and looming in the future when the
energy bill comes up again
·
The CCL2 contaminant list is out
·
The EPA has issued a lead reduction plan
·
On the financial front for AWWA
o
Revenue is $82,000 under for the first 2 months of 2005
o
Expenses are $576,000 under for the same period
o
As a result net income is up $494,000
·
The ad-hoc committee on AWWA governance has some documents out which I
believe I sent to all of you or they are available on the web. There will be
discussion at the June conference so if you have any thoughts for me, please
let me know. The section could discuss it more thoroughly in Oct. and it will
be a major topic at the fall Regional meeting. The plan is for further
discussion at the January Board meeting with changes adopted at the June 2006
meeting.
In the past year I have been on the nominating
committee, the public officials committee, the finance committee, and I wrote a
letter to the Board with issues that will be part of the Governance committee
changes. I also worked with Terry Rolan
on the membership restructuring issue and I hope Terry can be successful in
making it more of a value for utilities to be members of AWWA.
As this is my last Section Board meeting as Director,
I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for my chance to work with
this Board over the last 3 years. It
has been a pleasure to serve this Section as its’ Director and to serve AWWA.
Glen, I’m sure will do a great job as the next Director. Give him your help as
he assumes the new job.
DISTRICT
REPORTS
NW District
(Hall)
The
dates for the 2005 NW District Water Operators’ School will be November 29 to
December 1. The Best Western at Thief River Falls will be the site of the
school. A planning meeting is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, May 24 at the
Best Western at Thief River Falls. The planning meeting will begin at 10 AM.
NE District (Lubovich)
The
Northeast District held its 2005 AWWA Waterworks Operator School on April 13-15
at Superiors Shores Resort in Two Harbors Minnesota. Attendance for this school was very good with over 55 individuals
registering. A host of topics were offered which included safety audits,
hydrant maintenance, water tower troubleshooting, and pump
selection/maintenance. The United States Coast Guard Duluth branch conducted a
class on Port Security. Regulatory updates were given by the Minnesota
Department of Health. A tour of the EPA
Labs near Lester River in Duluth was also offered.
One
the highlights of the school was a talk given by Scott Anderson (City of St.
Louis Park) on the basics of human relations.
Everyone in the room seemed to relate to this topic that focused on the
idea of treating individuals as you would want to be treated. Scott will be
back again next year to once again bring his positive, motivational spin on
life to our school.
Bud
Kruase, outgoing trustee for the Northeast district recently retired from
Comfort Systems of Duluth. Bud has offered
his knowledge, humor, dedication and tireless support to the Northeast District
for many years. Thank you Bud for all your help. Corey Lubovich (City of
Hibbing) has assumed the duties of the Northeast District Trustee. Jerry
Lavigne (Silver Bay) has been elected Chairperson of the Northeast District for
2005.
The
2006 Northeast District Water Operator School will be held at Ruttger's Sugar
Lake Lodge near Grand Rapids MN, with the dates yet to be set.
Central
District (Stai)
The Central District annual three‑day
school will be held at Ruttger's Bay Lake Lodge at Deerwood from Wednesday,
June 8 through Friday, June 10. Rooms have been set aside on Tuesday, June 7,
for those who want to arrive early. For lodging arrangements, contact Ruttger's
at 800‑450‑4545 and mention that you are attending the Water
Operator's School.
In late February, all AWWA MN Section
members that have their e‑mail addresses on file with AWWA should have
been sent a notice of this school. In mid‑April, a program brochure
should have been mailed to all water operators in the Central District. You can
also e‑mail me at: water@wmu.willmar.mn.us and I will furnish you with
the needed information.
We will also be having a "Gimmicks
and Gadgets" contest with prizes: $75 for first‑place, $50 for
second‑place, and $25 for third‑place. For more information on this
contest you can contact me at my e‑mail address or you can contact Jim
Sadler (who is commonly known as "Bulldog") at 763‑494‑6377
or his e‑mail address: jsadler@ci.maple‑grove.mn.us. The first‑place
entry will be submitted to the MN Section Annual Conference that will be held
at Duluth October 5 ‑ 8.
The Central District one‑day school
will be held at St. John's University at Collegeville on Wednesday, October 26,
2005. Information for this school will be available this summer after the
Central District Education Committee (a really "cool" group) has met.
Metro
District (Tracy)
Metro
District quarterly meeting will be held Wednesday May 25, 2005, at David Fongs
9329 Lyndale Ave. S. Bloomington, this meeting is held in conjunction with
Suburban Utility Superintendents Association (SUSA).
The
Metro District Operators School was held at the Ramada Airport and Thunderbird
Convention Center in Bloomington, Wednesday April 6 through Friday, April 8,
2005. The School attendance and profit
is down from last year.
The
Metro District has begun planning the 2006 Spring School. Tentative dates are Wednesday, April 5
through Friday April 7, 2006, we are waiting for confirmation from the Thunderbird
for these dates. Registration fees will
be raised $10.00 for 2006, to $135.00 ($170.00 at the door or after March 24,
2006).
Carol
Blommel from Apple Valley will be the new Metro District Education Chair for
the 2006 school.
Revenues:
245 @ $125..................................................................................................... $30,625
8 @ $160............................................................................................................ 1,280
1 @ $100............................................................................................................... 100
47 product exhibitors @ $150 each (includes
money paid for extra breakfasts).................. 7,378
Total................................................................................................................ $39,383
Expenses:
Thunderbird Hotel......................................................................................... $24,994.63
Planning Lunch 12/16/04..................................................................................... $70.00
Top Ops Plaques................................................................................................. 80.00
Buses............................................................................................................ 2,456.25
Speaker (Baron Von Raschke $300).................................................................... 300.00
Total........................................................................................................... $28,287.35
Gross Profit................................................................................................. $11,095.65
Assessments
254 @ $5 (Youth Education Program).................................................................. $1,270
254 @ $9
(Minnesota Section)........................................................................... $2,286
Net Profit...................................................................................................... $7,539.65
SW District
(Moulton)
The
Southwest Section of the Minnesota AWWA met in New Ulm on March 30, 2005. There
were over 70 people in attendance for a very good program. New Ulm Mayor Joel
Albrecht was there to humor the crowd and welcome them to the community after
which the following speakers made presentations.
Jerry
Balbach from Minnesota Valley Testing Laboratory gave a presentation on the
proper sampling and preservation techniques when preparing and delivering water
samples for analysis.
Karla
"better late than never" Peterson presented a Compliance Update from
the Minnesota Department of Health.
Jeff
Domras from Bolton and Menk Engineering explained AWWA standards and their proper
use during the course of watermain and utility construction projects.
Jim
Japs from the Minnesota DNR office explained new and proposed guidelines for
Water Conservation Plans and explained future requirements.
Dave
Brown from PCE Consultants was there to explain the purpose of the "Young
Professionals" group of the Minnesota AWWA.
The
New Ulm police department gave a presentation on Meth Labs and their impact on
society and Utility Operators.
Allen
Lamm from New Ulm discussed a recent security breach and explained the proper
procedures and steps that were taken to assure the quality of the New Ulm water
supply was protected.
Richard
Rone of Locators & Supplies of Fergus Falls gave a demonstration on proper
use of locating equipment that included a field demonstration.
There
was one gimmick and gadget entrant, information will be available at the Annual
Conference.
David Sanderson of Kilkenny Minnesota was the winner
of the AWWA membership drawing.
SE
District (Halvorson)
The
3 day Southeast District Waterworks Operator's School was a great success again
this year. The school was held at the Ramada Hotel and Conference Center in
Rochester March 22-24, 2005. There were 118 total registered operators. There
were 28 vendor booths occupied during the Exhibitor and Product Fair. There
were 26 Operators taking certification exams. At the business meeting, Dennis
Duchene from the City of Faribault was brought in as chair elect. Corey Aadalen
from the City of Red Wing takes the chair position held by Wylie Rindels of
Rochester Public Utilities.
The Southeast District
fall one-day operator's school will be held October 28, 2005 at the American
Legion in Faribault.
Trustee-At-Large (Sadler)
2004 Gimmicks and Gadget awards when to:
1st place Bob Doll, City of Lakeville
Utility Service line flusher using a
garden hose.
2nd place Rick Wozniak, City of
Cokato sander lift with wheels
There have been no entries so far this
year.
Enter your tool or device at your
district schools and have your trustee contact me. 763‑494‑6377
COUNCIL/COMMITTEE
REPORTS
Administration
Council (AbouAish)
The
second Annual Governing Board Retreat/Training Session was held at Riverwood
Inn in Monticello on January 26-27th, was well attended and again was a
success. An indexed/marked-up copy of
the Section Governing Board, Council and District Policies were discussed at
the January Board meeting. It was also
later distributed to the non-board members of the Ad-Hoc Committee. Several comments were received, and a
meeting is being planned to review and discuss them. An Interim Report is expected by the fall, prior to the Annual
Section meeting in Duluth.
Committee Reports
No
report.
The Finance Committee met on May 10, 2005
at the Bloomington Water Treatment Plant. Barb Woolsey (chair) and Jon Eaton
were present. Dave Peterson and Karl Streed were absent.
The section financial status and investments as of April 30, 2005
were reviewed.
Action items from the January committee meeting were
reviewed and board action noted.
The 2004 financial audit, year-end report and tax
returns were reviewed. All documents represent the financial status of the
section at the end of 2004. No accounting irregularities were found. The tax
forms were signed and sent. The committee approved and recommends the Board
approve the year-end report for publication in the Fall Conference Breeze.
Discussion
and planning needs to begin about the income / expense gap. At the current
pace, all financial goals will be achieved in two to three years. Program
spending (either existing or new) must begin to pick up so the section does not
overshoot its goals. The Finance Committee will review the section investment
strategies with our Wells Fargo Investment representative to assure our needs
and goals are aligned.
The
committee reviewed the current bylaws, policies, and procedures that apply to
section finances. All recommended changes were forwarded to the APC Council
chair for Task Force review.
Action Items:
1. Approve the 2004 year-end report for
publication in the conference Breeze.
Following
is a brief overview of recent IT committee activities.
1.
Work on the Section
website has continued and additional features and links have been
included. The new Discussion Board will
allow members to exchange information and ideas on Section relevant topics of
their choosing. We encourage all those
with ideas on what features they would like to have added to the site to
contact a member of the committee.
2.
The toll free
teleconferencing services are available through each committee. The feed back so far has been positive,
especially from the non-metro Section members.
3.
The committee is
working on the following action items.
·
Expanding the use of
technology to support other committees.
We are requesting that committees bring their ideas forward and we will
jointly work on implementation.
·
The reduction in
circulation of the printed Breeze to those willing to accept an electronic copy
is still planned. A deadline and final
logistics have not been recommended to the Administrative Council at this time.
·
New committee
initiatives are under consideration and will be further developed over the next
6 months and placed into practice or brought to the Administrative Council as
appropriate.
4.
By way of showcasing
water treatment technology advances that have been implemented in Minnesota,
the Minneapolis Water Works, Membrane Filtration Plant in Columbia Heights will
be the featured facility for tours on August 1st during the American Membrane
Technology Association annual conference as well as and on September 14th
during the national American Public Works Association conference.
The Membership Committee met in St. Cloud on Tuesday March 8th
to review the goals for the year and plan membership recognition, retention and
recruitment efforts at the district schools, annual Section meeting and other
organization meetings through the year.
Attending were Herb Watry (Litchfield Utilities), Bill Spain (St. Cloud
Tech), Brian Vos (City of Cologne), Jayme Klecker (ERI, Inc.), Drew Anderson
(City of Waconia), and John Lapointe (Earth Tech).
The committee is seeking volunteers for the committee representing
operators, a mid-sized utility, small system members, a consultant, a manufacturer and MDH. The following people have volunteered to
participate in the Membership Committee:Todd Johnson, MDH, Bemidji, MN; Grant
Meyer, AE2s, Inc., Brainerd, MN; Michael McNab, Hydro Metering Technology,
Burnsville, MN
Progress toward Committee Goals and Objectives include:
Individual Membership
While the Minnesota Section has added 50 members since the
beginning of 2005 but is not outpacing retirements, moves, etc. enough to reach
our goal of 1000 members (without including multi-section members) by the end
of the year. Membership not including
multi-section members is currently at roughly 950 members (948 in March and 943
in April). We are reviewing causes for
attrition as well as re-emphasizing member-to-member recruitment. We have a number of bad addresses in the
database. The committee will be
dividing up the list to correct the database.
Utility Members
The Minnesota Section has bet its goal of 115 Utility Members and
will continue to promote utility membership.
As a point of reference, in July 2003 there were 109 Utility
Members. We have discovered that some
utility members are not taking full advantage of named representative and
additional named member benefits.
Utility members will be contacted if the committee finds an opportunity
for them to add named members to their utility membership.
Recruitment
Congratulations to Jim Dillman, Pete Moulton, Allen Lamm, and Keith
Redmond for being named as endorsers for new members in the last two
months. There was a large push late
last year to provide mailing lists to AWWA for a mass mailing. The Section received 3 new members as a
result of a mass mailing to water plant operators not already in AWWA. The committee consensus was that more focus
on recruiting new members through person-to-person contact would be more
effective.
Young Professionals
Grant Meyer of AE2S was recommended as a liaison between Young
Professionals and Membership to replace Dave Brown, who has the Assistant
Secretary.
Small Systems
Drew Anderson is focused on recruiting small and medium sized
utilities. He will be presenting how
AWWA greatly benefits small and medium sized utilities and the staff running
these utilities. It was suggested that
AWWA MN Section produce a DVD or other presentation on the “Value of AWWA
Membership” that could be played at every operator’s school / seminar.
Membership Committee Activities at the District Schools
The committee is planning to have the membership booth set up and manned at the Annual Conference, the MRWA Conference and the Metro Operators School. At the other events, it the committee will be asking for a five minute presentation on the benefits of membership, and have a supply of application forms to hand out.
Nominating (Bernie Bullert, Doug
Rovang)
Nomination
for the Section Chair-Elect is in progress.
Please contact Doug Rovang for recommendation/s. Section Director and Trustee-at-Large are
not due this year.
Conference
Council (Schultz)
The Annual Conference in Duluth is shaping up nicely. All major components have been booked. A great conference agenda has been put together by John Crooks and the Conference Agenda Committee.
The banquet this year has been booked for the Historic Depot this year. Our Chair has requested a buffet style meal with a business casual dress for this event. Many exciting events are planed for the banquet social. Including the Champagne Lady.
I
have been checking into conference locations and availability for 2006
annual. There has been a lot of
discussion with District Trustee’s regarding a three-year central location.
Agenda items to discuss:
Should
we have a three-year central location for the Annual AWWA Conference? If so where?
A
new trend in Conference organizations is to e-mail the conference and vendor
notices. The organizers who have done
the e-mail notice approach have said it has saved $$$ in shipping and printing
cost.
This
new approach has been well received by members. Should we try this new advertising approach for the Duluth
Conference???
Program Committee (John Crooks)
No
report.
Manufacturers Council (Norton)
The
meeting was called to order by Council Chair Jim Norton at 9:00 AM on April 15,
2005, in the Conference Room of American Ductile Iron Pipe, 21695 Highview Ave,
Lakeville, MN.
Attendance
A. MAC members present at the meeting were Jim
Norton, Dave Scheerer, Jerry Ackerman, Tony Belden, Tom Mumm, Ron Vasko, Bernie
Bullert, and Heath Picken. Myron
Volker, Minnesota Section AWWA Chair, attended as a representative of the
Section Board, and Ben Mason attended as a liaison from the National MAC.
B. Jim Norton reviewed the MAC roster. Several changes to the roster are
required. David Scheerer will make the
changes and present the updated MAC roster to Jim Norton.
C. A vacant position still exists for a
Manufacturer representative on the MAC. Ron Vasko and Ben Mason stated they
would be meeting with a potential candidate and report back as to his
availability.
2. Minutes
A. David Scheerer, MAC Secretary, presented the
minutes from the December 3, 2004, MAC meeting. Tom Mumm made the motion to
accept the December 3, 2004, minutes.
Ron Vasko seconded the motion.
Motion passed.
3. Vice Chair Position
A. Jim Norton stated the need for a MAC Vice Chair
and he reviewed the responsibilities of the position. Jim asked for a MAC member to step forward and volunteer for the
position. Tony Belden agreed to fill
the position. Thanks Tony!
4. Governing Board
Working Session
A. Jim Norton reported that
he had attended the MN Section Governing Board Working Session held at the
Riverwood Inn, Monticello, MN, on January 26th, 2005. Jim gave the MAC an overview of the working
session.
B. Jim reported that the MN
Section Board has asked the MAC to advise the Board with ideas to improve the
MN Section Annual Fall Conference. A
lengthy discussion followed and a wide variety of ideas were discussed. The MAC has examined this topic other times
in the past several years and during today’s discussion the MAC referred back
to many of the facts and figures presented in earlier discussions. MAC members feel that the current format of
the Annual Conference adequately addresses issues important to utility
managers, the target audience of the Annual Conference. MAC members also agreed that the three-day
schools put on by each District adequately address training and other issues
important to water utility operators, the target audience of the three-day
school.
C. The MAC suggests that a
goal for improving the Annual Fall Conference should be to make this conference
more accessible to the targeted attendee: utility managers. In addition, to help support the goal of the
Minnesota Section to be the voice of the water industry in Minnesota, our Fall
Conference target audience could be expanded to include others with an interest
in the water industry. Our audience
could expand to include public works directors, city engineers, educators, and
city and state legislators. With this
idea in mind, the discussion turned to proven methods that other sections have
used to make their conferences more accessible to this target audience. We examined strategies that have been used
to successfully and significantly increase annual conference attendance in
other areas of the country. The
discussions resulted in the following three suggestions, which were presented
in the form of motions.
1st
Motion: The MAC recommends that the MN Section Annual Fall Conference be held
at a central location for a minimum of three years, beginning in 2006. David
Scheerer made the motion, Tony Belden seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed.
2nd Motion: The MAC recommends that the MN Section
Annual Fall Conference be in the Twin Cities Metro Area. David Scheerer made the motion, Ron Vasko seconded the motion. A vote was take and the motion passed.
3rd
Motion: The MAC recommends that the Annual Section Fall Conference be held the
last full week in September. Tom Mumm
made the motion, Jerry Ackerman seconded the motion. A vote was take and the motion passed
5. National MAC Issues
A. Ben Mason reported on
his trip to the National MAC Spring meeting, held in Hilton Head, SC on March
21-22, 2005.
B. Ben presented a written report on the meeting
that included a brief overview of the following topics:
1. Recently,
revisions to several AWWA standards were circulated that contained new language
in the Material section of these standards.
2. An upcoming
article on Section MAC’s will be in the October Mainstream.
3. Those
planning to attend the ACE should include the Water Industry Luncheon on
Tuesday, as Mike Ditka is the speaker.
4. There will
be a Career Fair at the ACE in San Francisco.
More information can be found at http://www.awwa.org/ace2005/highlights/index.cfm#career.
5. The
National MAC meeting at the ACE is on Wednesday morning from 7:30 – 10:00.
C. Ben reported that National AWWA membership is
at an all time high.
D. Ben reported on the role of the National MAC
in mobilizing manufactures and other associates throughout industry with the
task of developing methods to fund future infrastructure redevelopment.
6. Committee Reports
A. Social Committee
Reports:
1. Todd
Bredesen, Social Committee Chair, was absent. Tony Belden gave the Social
Committee report. Tony reported that the MN Section breakfast meeting will
happen at the 2005 ACE on June 13th, at the San Francisco Marriott.
2. Tony
said the contract with the hotel is signed.
3. There
will be two guest speakers. First, will
be Terry Roland, National AWWA President Elect. Second, will be Dave Casper, former Oakland Raider Great.
B. Exhibits Committee
Report:
1. Ron Vasko, Exhibits
Committee Chair, provided a brief Committee report. Ron reviewed the 2005 product show problems. The Committee is taking suggestions for
improvements for the 2005 product show at the Section Annual Fall Conference.
C. Endowment Committee
Report:
1. Jerry Ackerman,
Endowment Committee Chair, reported that he has completed the recruitment of
Committee members and that the Endowment Committee is in place. They will be meeting on May 10th
for their first meeting. They plan to
meet again, if necessary, just before the next MAC meeting.
7. New Business
A. There was no new business
8. Next Meeting
A. The next MAC meeting
will be held at offices of Davies / Northern Waterworks, 1694 91st Avenue N.
E., Blaine, MN. The scheduled time and
date is 9:00 AM on Friday, September 16th, 2005.
9. Adjourn
A. Ron Vasko made a motion
to adjourn the meeting. Bernie Bullert
seconded the motion. The meeting was
adjourned.
Public
Affairs Council (Lange-Haider)
Public Information (Stew Thornley)
The
Minnesota AWWA Public Information Committee met in April and updated its
purpose statement and list of action items and tasks, to wit:
Purpose
Support
outreach efforts of the Minnesota Section American Water Works Association to
the public and support internal communication with Minnesota Section members.
Action Items/Tasks
*Identify activities for the committee to provide public outreach.
*Communicate
relevant news to members on a regular basis as well as news alerts.
Regarding
news alerts, the committee decided to use the same e-mail list now being used
for “This Month in Minnesota AWWA” to communicate on an as-needed basis with
members when there is some type of breaking news or event. This could be something like a report being
issued by an activist group that members should be aware of and ready to respond
to.
The
committee has also established a newsgroup/e-list on Yahoo! that will serve as
an electronic bulletin board in which members can post questions and comments
on issues related to drinking water.
People will have to register with Yahoo! to participate, although it is
a free registration. The e-list is at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/minnesotaawwa.
At
our next meeting, in July, we will talk about items that we can add to the
Minnesota AWWA web site, including publications related to the most topical
interests in drinking water for the public.
Publications (Erik Juhl)
In
2004 a Directory, spring Light Breeze, Fall Conference Exhibitor Prospectus,
Fall Conference Brochure, Fall Conference Breeze, Fall Conference
Program/Accessories, and fall Light Breeze were published and mailed. Publications
(the annual Directory, spring Light Breeze, Fall Conference Breeze, and fall
Light Breeze) income from advertising was $24,361.50 and expenses were
$19,740.69 for a net gain of $4,620.81. The number of advertisers was increased
to the low fifties. The committee hopes to continue push those numbers into the
mid fifties this year.
The
2005 Directory and the spring Light Breeze are out. We have begun working on
fall conference items (exhibitor brochure, conference brochure, conference
Breeze, and the conference program). Advertising income is $20,656 and
publication expenses are $8,867; right on track with our income/expense
estimates.
Water for People (Scott Anderson)
Several raffles were
conducted at the operator schools.
SE district - the raffle
was held at the vendor show with the help of Jack Kollmer/KLM (he contacted the
vendors to donate gifts). We had 14
vendors donate gifts and were able to raise $742. There were 116 registered for the school.
Metro district - the
raffle was run by Dawn Horner, Howard R. Green Company (she contacted vendors
for donations). We had 22vendors donate
gifts and raised $ 617. There were 244
registered for the school.
NE district – Scott
Anderson gave a WFP presentation. One vendor donated a gift and Superior Shores
Resort donated a one-night stay. We raised $246. There were 51 registered for the school.
Lyle Stai will be
conducting a raffle at the Central District School in June.
Scott Anderson plans to
meet with the MAC to work on the golf outing in Duluth at the Annual
Conference.
Scholarship (Gerry Smith)
No report.
Young Professionals (Doug
Klamerus)
No report.
Training
Council (K. Peterson)
The
Minnesota Section districts have been conducting their 2005 spring schools:
Southeast
District, March 22-24, Ramada Inn and Conference Center, Rochester: 118
registrants
Metro
District, April 6-8, Ramada Inn and Thunderbird Convention Center, Bloomington:
254 registrants
Southwest
District, March 30, Holiday Inn, New Ulm: 67 registrants
Northeast
District, April 13-15, Superior Shores Resort, Two Harbors, 39 registrants
Still
to come:
Central
District, June 8-10, Ruttger’s Bay Lake Lodge, Deerwood
The
2006 Metro School will be back at the Ramada Inn and Thunderbird Convention
Center in Bloomington from Wednesday, April 5 through Friday, April 7. The Northeast District will be moving its
school to Ruttger’s Sugar Lake Lodge in Grand Rapids in 2006. The school will be held from Wednesday,
April 26 to Friday, April 28.
In
addition to the two Water Works! Drinking Water Institutes for Educators
the Education Committee will be conducting this summer, the committee is
working with Hamline University’s Center for Global Environmental Education to
expand the scope of the Institutes through a module on a CD-ROM and on-line
learning. We will be receiving a grant
of $25,000 from the Minnesota Department of Health and seeking funding from
Minnesota AWWA to have the Center create a module on Minnesota drinking water
that will be part of a CD-ROM. This
will be used in future Drinking Water Institutes and will be distributed to
other teachers in the state. In
addition, the module will be adapted for use on the web sites of Minnesota AWWA
and the Minnesota Department of Health.
The
2005 Management Institute was held March 7-9.
Twenty-five people were in attendance.
The Advanced Institute was canceled due to a lack to interest.
The Research Committee’s Spring Meeting is planned for Early May. This will be the first meeting to include “call-in” attendees to enhance member participation. We’ll keep our fingers crossed. A few on-going activities include:
· The annual conference will include a concurrent session on Thursday October 6th that is dedicated to regional research. The program is shaping up nicely with researchers from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and South Dakota. This will be an excellent opportunity for us all to learn some new aspects of the water business.
· A Membrane Technology Workshop is in the early planning stages. It will be in Minneapolis mid-2006. This exciting workshop will include detailed information on low and high pressure systems and associated research, pilot testing, implementation issues, and selected case studies.
· Enhanced AwwaRF participation by Minnesota Utilities continues to be nudged forward. There are currently 16 Minnesota Utility AwwaRF members. At any given time, we typically see one to three AwwaRF funded projects involving Minnesota Utilities. We can all agree that there is room for more “home grown” water research.
· Upcoming Committee meetings include a summer conference call in July/August and our Fall Meeting in early October at the annual conference.
Please contact Doug Lubben if you would like additional information, if you are interested in volunteering, and/or if you have suggestions for any aspect of the Research Committee activities.
See
the Spring issue of the Light Breeze.
See
the Spring issue of the Light Breeze.
Water
Utility Council (K. Johnson)
Meeting
Minutes from the Thursday March 17, 2005 meeting held @ Bloomington Water
Treatment Facility in Bloomington, Minnesota
Attendance:
Bernie Bullert, Bob Cockriel, Chris Elvrum, Glen Gerads, Steve
Gleason, Kevin Graves (Sub for Bill Angerman), Chad Hill, Kurt Johnson, Adam
Kramer, Allen Lamm, John Lapointe, Doug Lubben, Dick Nagy, Chip Robinson, Ed
Sorenson, Don Volk.
Housekeeping:
Kurt Johnson chaired the meeting.
Kurt introduced Doug Lubben as newly appointed commercial member
of WUC. Doug is with CH2M Hill.
Meeting Minutes:
The Meeting Minutes of December 16, 2004 were approved. Motion by Dick Nagy;
Second by Ed Sorenson. Motion
approved.
Congressional/EPA Update:
None. Bob Peplin was not present.
Legislation being Advanced:
Steve
Gleason distributed a proposed bill, Senate File No. 1009, relating to landlord
and tenant; which proposes to make unlawful collection of outstanding water
utility charges by way of; 1. Attempting to collect from the property owner who
has not contracted for the service 2. Conditioning service on payment of an
outstanding bill when previous customer has vacated the property 3. Placing a
lien on property whether created by local ordinance or otherwise.
Steve Gleason stated Saint Paul Regional Water currently assigns
all bills to the property. Saint Paul
has no relationship with tenants. Saint
Paul believes this bill is detrimental to collections and places an
inappropriate burden on the utility to collect from a tenant. Saint Paul is concerned the bill seeks to
negate all local ordinances establishing the relationship between the bill and
the property.
Adam Kramer and Bob Cockriel stated their Cities (Minneapolis and
Bloomington respectively) had similar ordinances establishing contract for
service with the property and not the occupants. Protecting this relationship is important.
Steve Gleason made a motion that the Water Utility Council prepare
a letter of objection to this proposed bill.
Second by Bob Cockriel. Motion
approved.
Al Lamm suggested perhaps a form letter objecting to the bill for
all cities to consider submitting should be prepared.
Legislative report from LMNC Representative:
Craig Johnson was not in attendance. However, Bernie Bullert spoke with Craig and provided the
following summary:
1.
State
Bonding Bill: Craig expects bonding
bill (previously estimated at $435M) will be fully funded.
2.
SRF … Craig
expects both the Waste Water SRF and the Drinking Water SRF will be fully
funded.
3.
Water
Appropriation: DNR has proposed raising
water appropriation fees. However, LMC
has advised DNR of its opposition to such a fee increase and further advised
DNR to dedicate latest rate hike to Water Appropriation operations as it is not
appropriate last rate hike monies went to the general fund. Craig may look to WUC representatives to
testify on this matter and oppose increase in appropriation fee.
4.
Drinking
Water Fee: Minnesota Department of
Health is seeking to raise $5.21 fee to $6.36 to balance fund to 2010. Craig expects this will be authorized.
5.
Impaired
Water Funding: An un-funded federal
mandate requires the State make impaired water environmental improvements. Some funding mechanism will be approved in
2005. The original proposal called for
collecting $36 per typical residential account via utility billing. Craig expects amount of funding will be different as well as the collection
mechanism.
6.
LMC will
likely object to proposed bill related to utility bills, landlords and tenants.
State-Related Water Issues:
1. Miscellaneous Updates
A. Gopher State One-Call
(GSOC) Adam Kramer
1.
With regard
to the bill requiring location of private utilities in the R-O-W:
a.
Adam stated
GSOC participated in the hearings to explain the effect of the proposed
legislation on the One-Call system.
b.
Hearings
have been held. Awaiting ruling from
Administrative Law Judge.
2.
There is a
national push for “positive response.”
An initial “811” plan has passed a senate committee. Such a requirement would greatly increase
one-call center operating costs.
3.
The current
vendor operating the one-call center is “One Call Concepts”. The firm is for sale. GSOC Board wants to avoid any slip in the
level of service offered by this company.
Accordingly, the Board is contemplating bidding new contract or
negotiating contract extension with “One-Call Concepts”.
4.
With regard
to the billing changes implemented in 2004, the GSOC Board is seeking to
collect an appropriate reserve. There
have been fewer locate tickets since the billing changes were implemented.
B. Environmental Quality
Board (EQB) Ed Sorenson
Ed distributed a report of the Environmental Quality Board dated
February 2005 identifying priorities for the 2005-2007 biennium.
Ed pointed out the report supports increasing the drinking water
fee of $5.21 to $6.36 and funding impaired water cleanup. He suggested all read the document. There was discussion on the sustainability
of Metropolitan water resources and the need to quantify actual availability
through a scientific approach.
C. National legislative
activity that may impact water:
Adam Kramer advised:
1.
The energy
lobby is looking for “safe harbor” to get out of liability for pollution it may
have caused. If the energy lobby is
successful, it means in the long-term water utilities could be responsible to
clean water supplies.
2.
NPDS
permits may be required for any artificial connection tying one (water shed)
basin to another. An example may be
Saint Paul pumping from the Mississippi River to the chain of lakes. Litigation on this matter is on-going.
3.
Disinfections
by-products rule. AMWA is putting
together guidance on how to respond to the inevitable press release suggesting
DBP may include trihalomethanes that have been linked to spontaneous abortions.
4.
Changes to
the lead rule are on the horizon.
5.
The 3M
scotchgard problem is getting national attention. PFOA and PFOS are linked to liver cancer. Much more study is needed on harmful
exposure limits.
2. Reports
A.
Minnesota
Rural Water Association
None. Ruth Hubbard was not present.
B.
Minnesota
Department of Health
None. Doug Mandy was not present.
C.
Metropolitan
Council
Chris Elvrum distributed House File No. 1044 and explained the bill lays out
the need to study Metropolitan water resources and better quantify
quantities. Met Council looks for bill
to be authorized. Met Council staff
does not have scientific information on sustainability of water resources. However, they have observed there are water
limitations in certain locales. Chris
suggested some positive points to the bill include the studies proposed under
the bill and the requirement to establish a water supply advisory committee to
the council.
D.
Minnesota
Department of Natural Resources
None. Jim Japs was not present.
E.
Association
Director
Bernie Bullert did not have specific association news to report.
Discussion/Action Items
1. WUC membership.
Currently, the WUC is represented by six Commercial Consulting
members and eleven Utility members. The
Commercial complement is two short of design.
We discussed the need to consider this representation especially
considering the national WUC is represented almost exclusively by Utility
members. All members should consider if
a recommendation to the section board may be appropriate. Some possible ratios may be
Commercial/Utility: 6/13, 7/12. Else,
WUC will seek additional Commercial members.
2. New Issues.
DNR Emergency/Conservation Plan Guidelines
DNR expects posting 10 year plan documents on the website by April
1, 2005. Letter to cities indicating
due date etc. will be issued the 1st week of April.
Water Appropriations.
Appropriation application will be optional part of 10-year
plan. If 10-year plan is approved,
appropriation will be approved.
We discussed the need to study and seek to understand the effect
of adjacent groundwater draw on Mississippi River flows. Overall flow may be decreasing.
Other
Business:
Adam
Kramer offered to host the September meeting of the Water Utility Council at
the Minneapolis Membrane Plant. He
offered to bring the group on a tour of the facility following the
meeting. The plant is scheduled to go
on-line in June 2005.
The
City of Minneapolis is one of two cities being considered as host city for the
2007 Membrane Technology Conference.
Next Meeting:
Will be held on Thursday June 23, 2005 10:00-12:00 at Saint Paul
Regional Water Services McCarron’s Center located at 1900 Rice Street in Saint
Paul, MN.
Meeting Adjourned:
There
being no further business, Kurt Johnson adjourned the meeting at 11:30PM.
Motion
by Bob Cockriel; Second by Don Volk. Motion approved.
Remove the nomination
committee report and the financial committee report, and WUC report
Motion to approve the
consent items except the director’s report and WUC report was made by AbouAish,
second by Rovang, and approved unanimously.
4. CONSENT DISCUSSION ITEMS
Finance Committee: Rovang requested Eaton review the recent financial
report and graphs; Eaton obliged.
Water Utility Council: Bullert reviewed recent legislative bills (SRF, DNR
appropriation – proposed 37% increase, drinking water fee, impaired water
funding, billing landlord/tenet). A 2005 Washington Fly-In summary was
distributed (3 of our legislators gave the MTBE safe-harbor). WUC is
considering a stipend to the LMC for the lobbying. The Mn Legislative session
is scheduled to end next week.
Nominating Committee: Policy/procedure states the district trustees and
the past-chair are the nominating committee. During break Doug got together
with district trustees to discuss the nomination procedures. During the same
time others split out to work on their 2006 business plan and budget.
Motion to approve the
Finance, WUC, and Nominating report was made by Lapointe, second by Moultan,
and approved unanimously.
5. UNFINISHED
BUSINESS
A. Training & Educational
Opportunities (Bullert)
Bullert had a conference call with 5 other sections. A survey was assembled and
will be discussed at the 2005 ACE. The survey will be distributed this fall to
determine future educational opportunities for operators that could be shopped
to the sections.
B. Section Merchandise (Gerads)
Gerads displayed various clothing options with various logos. Gerads requested
the section standardize on the one basic logo (the “Minnesota AWWA”), have BOD
members wear specific clothing - (so we look like a team), place orders on the
web and at the conference. Gerads ordered 1,000 new section pins. A suggestion
was made to have conference items (like the old mugs). Pins will be given at
this year’s annual conference. PI committee will handle future conference
items.
Yasser suggested this issue be given to a council/committee, specifically
the PI committee, for logistical and budgetary reasons. Rovang second the motion,
unanimously approved.
Lapointe recommended ordering one denim shirt for each current BOD member,
Tracy second the motion, unanimously approved.
C. Annual Fall Conference Location and
Dates (Schultz)
Schultz discussed future conference locations. District trustees discussed the
issue as it applies to them. Eaton reviewed conference history. MAC discussed issues that apply to them.
Rovang motioned to have the 2006 Fall Conference at the DECC in Duluth, MN
September 20-22, second by Sadler. Tracy amended the motion to a 3-yr
commitment, 2006-08, and the 3rd week in Sept, second by Stai.
Amendment to the motion was approved with one dissenting vote (Lapointe).
Amended motion passed with 4 oppositions (AbouAish, Lapointe, Lubovich,
Rovang).
AbouAish motioned the Conference Council determine measures of conference
success/failure to minimize future debate and report annually to the BOD,
second by Tracy, approved with one dissenting vote (Schultz).
D. Business Plan Update (Rovang)
Rovang passed out information to council chairs discussing the business plan
and nominations. Eaton reminded
everyone to complete budgets and return to Doug in timely manner. Provide backup material to justify costs.
E. Champion and Fresh Ideas Program Update
(Bullert)
Still not officially rolled out…Bullert will continue to monitor the issue.
F. $5.21 Support Letter Status
(Volker/Johnson)
Nothing has been done. Mandy was to request the letter if needed. Johnson will
be contacted by Volker to get the letter completed and sent if Mandy so
chooses.
G. Policy/Procedure Update (AbouAish)
AbouAish reminded the BOD members of the two motions from the 2004 Fall Conf;
the nomination procedures (discussed at the Jan BOD meeting), and the
Policy/Procedure review. A cleaned up copy (divided into Board, Council, and
District issues) of them was distributed to BOD in Jan. Phase one will address
policy/procedure changes (that do not require bylaw changes). Phase two will
address bylaw changes and associated policy/procedure changes.
H. Membrane Technology Conference
(Bullert)
Tampa received the conference. Weather in March was an issue with the Minnesota
location. The Research Committee will be having a membrane conference in 2006
and will highlight the Mpls plant.
6. NEW
BUSINESS
A. 2005
Association Meeting Review
Washington DC Fly-in (K.
Johnson)
A summary was distributed.
B. 2005
Association Meetings Attendance
ACE – June 13-16 in San
Francisco, CA
Anderson motioned the Section Chair attend the ACE conference with the section
cover the expenses, second by Tracy, unanimously approved.
Summer Leadership
Workshop and WFP Workshop – July 21-22 in Breckenridge, CO
Attendees will be Chair-elect Lapointe, first-year Trustee Lubovich, Chair
Volker, Asst Sec Brown, and Trustee Stai, and Director Gerads. Sadler and Stai
switched between summer leadership and RMSO because Stai can’t make RMSO. Tracy
motioned to send the Sec/Treas to the Leadership, second by Anderson,
unanimously approved.
Regional
Meeting of Section Officers (RMSO) - October 21-22, Chicago, IL
Consider Lubovich, Moultan, Lapointe, Brown, Schultz, Sadler, Peterson, Rovang,
Blommel. AbouAish, Volker, and Eaton are secondary.
C. ACE Get-Together (Hall/Belden)
The section breakfast is Monday June 13th 7:30-8:30a. There are two
guest speakers.
D. National Governance Documents (Bullert)
Bullert discussed the documents and time schedule, and requested opinions on
the various options. The most current information will be provided at the next
BOD meeting when comments will be noted. The section comments will be brought
to the RMSO.
E. Section Assessment Change (Volker)
The exec board approved the 5% level.
F. Education Grant (Peterson)
Anderson motioned to commit up to $10K to develop a “Minnesota water” focused
CD with Hamline University and re-evaluate the project in Oct for future
expenditures (donate more money), second by Lapointe, unanimously approved.
G. SCTC – WETT Program (Eaton)
Tracy motioned to spend up to 1.5K for advertising for Saint Cloud Technical
College - Water Environment Technologies program. Rovang second, unanimously
approved
H. D&O Insurance (Eaton)
The section is checking into costs for directors and officers (D&O)
liability insurance and will have numbers at the Oct meeting.
I. AWWA advertising (Eaton)
National AWWA is asking to advertise in our publications. MN section will
charge for the ad and a fee schedule will be sent ASAP.
6. NEXT BOARD MEETING
Monday Oct 3, 2005 6pm at a
location to be determined in Duluth, MN.
7. ADJOURNMENT
Motion to adjourn by Moultan, second by Stai, unanimously
approved at 14:20pm.