Illinois EPA announces new online permit portal to assist drinking water and wastewater treatment plant operators

Announcement part of IEPA's ongoing mission to ensure clean water for everyone in Illinois

[May 11, 2013]  SPRINGFIELD -- This week Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director Lisa Bonnett announced the launch of a new online portal that will help drinking water and wastewater treatment plant operators more easily update their certification records and manage their ongoing training requirements. The announcement coincides with National Drinking Water Week, May 5-11, which highlights the value of water to each of us in our everyday lives.

"I'm very proud that IEPA has made major strides in streamlining our permit and certification processes," Bonnett said. "This portal will not only help plant operators stay up-to-date with their training, it will also save time and money by decreasing costly mailings. We will continue using technology to better accomplish our mission of protecting Illinois' environment for generations to come."

The new portal, http://dataservices.epa.illinois.gov/
operatorcertification/OpCertWelcome.aspx, is part of an ongoing effort to make government more streamlined, efficient and transparent. To ensure the safety of the state's drinking water supplies and the water quality of rivers and streams, the Illinois EPA requires individuals to be properly credentialed with ongoing training requirements.

The new Web application will allow operators to search for their operator ID number, update contact information, manage and update training credit hours for drinking water certification renewal, search the examination schedule and locations, and search approved training courses and training providers.

While individuals will still be able to work with the Illinois EPA as they have previously, the agency anticipates that by increasing the use of technology innovations like the operator Web service, Illinois taxpayers will benefit from the cost savings while improving stakeholder service.

For more information about the IEPA's ongoing efforts to protect Illinois' water supply, visit the Bureau of Water's website at http://www.epa.state.il.us/water/.

[Text from Illinois Environmental Protection Agency file received from the Illinois Office of Communication and Information]