FRANKFORT, Ky. (May 12, 2014) – Laurie Berry, a retired wastewater operator at the Glasgow Water Co., has been honored with the second annual Steve Crosman Award for Outstanding Environmental Professionalism. Berry, who holds a Class IV wastewater treatment license and previously held a landfarm certification, was nominated by Melissa Brothers of Train 2 Retain Resources, LLC. The Kentucky Division of Compliance Assistance (DCA), located within the Department for Environmental Protection, presents this annual award in memory of Steve Crosman, a trainer with the Certification and Licensing Branch of DCA, who passed away in December of 2011. Steve devoted himself to ensuring safe water for Kentucky by making sure he did his best to assist and train operators. The purpose of the award is to recognize those individuals who value professionalism in their work and see the importance of providing quality service to the citizens of the Commonwealth. During her 27-year career, Berry was dedicated to helping operators achieve their goals of certification and training. She served as both a board member of the Central Chapter of the Kentucky Water & Wastewater Operators Association (KWWOA) and the state KWWOA, as well as being an instructor on a voluntary basis. Under Train 2 Retain Resources, , Berry took on the responsibility of writing study material and explaining the wastewater treatment process. While serving as the pretreatment coordinator for the Glasgow Water Co., Berry was instrumental in increasing the number of permitted significant and insignificant industrial users from five to 14, , which ensured protection of waters in her community because of the municipalities’ ability to treat this waste and ensure the quality of effluent from the users. Not only did Berry implement the Fats, Oils and Grease program, but she helped to educate the public on the importance of this type of program in helping to maintain wastewater systems. Berry also implemented a waste hauler program for her municipality to be sure that waste was not dumped illegally and to provide an additional revenue stream for the water company. To learn more about the Steve Crosman Award, visit http://dca.ky.gov/certification/Pages/Steve-Crosman-Award.aspx or call the Division of Compliance Assistance toll-free at 800-926-8111.
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