By Derek Sankey, Calgary Herald
September 7, 2010
A new Environmental Professional (EP) certification takes effect Sept. 7 across Canada when a national campaign is launched to promote awareness of the new designation, which brings together all environmental professionals in areas such as engineering, geology, geography, hydrology and many others under a single certification.
Since 2000, the Canadian Environmental Certification Approvals Board (CECAB) has administered numerous qualifications for many specialized environmental professionals. This new EP certification brings all of those professionals under one umbrella, but they will retain their areas of specialization.
"It has become a real alphabet soup with respect to (environmental) professional designations," says Grant Trump, president of ECO Canada, a government-funded sector council working with CECAB to promote the new designation. "This gives us the ability to co-ordinate them."
Currently, regulators dictate which professional groups can sign off on environmental reports and projects in each province. The problem, according to industry insiders, is that just because you're an engineer -- one of the qualified groups -- doesn't mean you can do environmental work, just as some qualified people fall outside of the identified groups.
Applicants must write an exam and undergo due diligence to prove they are competent in their area of environmental specialization through CECAB. A revision every five years includes ongoing testing and professional development, to prove those holding the designation remain current.
Ramin Bogzaran, director of business development at environmental contractor CCS Corp. -- and a recent EP designee -- says the fact this is a national standard addresses the reality that the environmental sector employs such a wide variety of professionals.
"We employ a real diverse set of skills . . . from technicians in the field to engineers," says Bogzaran, who specializes in water quality, restoration and reclamation. "The environmental industry is unique in that it attracts people from very diverse backgrounds."
The EP designation, accredited by the Standards Council of Canada, is also accredited through the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) under its 17024 document, which addresses certifications for personnel.
Although it's still a new designation, Bogzaran expects industry, educational institutions and professionals will embrace it to enhance their own credibility.
"If someone is applying for a (job) in the company and they have the (EP) designation, it will be a plus for them because we will know they have gone through a verification process," he says. "If you had to compare two people on equal footing and one has the EP designation, that one is going to get the job."
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