Chapter NR 114

NR 114.34(4) (4) Fees may not be refunded to an applicant who fails to pass an examination, who fails to appear to take the examination, or who fails to identify himself or herself on request.

NR 114.34(5) (5) The department shall collect these fees pursuant to s. 281.17 (3), Stats., for uses including the administration of this chapter.

NR 114.34(6) (6) A veteran may request a fee waiver for a first-time license or operator certificate in accordance with the veterans fee waiver program under s. 45.44, Stats.

NR 114.34 History History: Cr. Register, December, 2000, No. 540, eff. 1-1-01; EmR2123: emerg. am. (1) (a), cr. (1) (f), am. (4), cr. (6), eff. 8-21-21; CR 21-068: am. (1) (a), cr. (1) (f), am. (4), cr. (6) Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22; correction in (1) (f) made under s. 35.17, Stats., Register April 2022 No. 796.

NR 114.35 NR 114.35 Issuance of certificates.

NR 114.35(1) (1) Upon satisfactory fulfillment of the qualifications required by this subchapter, the department shall issue a certificate to a person indicating the water system subclasses for which the person has been certified.

NR 114.35(2) (2) Certificates may be issued for reciprocal certification, without examination, in a comparable subclass to any person who holds a current certificate in any state, territory or possession of the United States, or any country, if in the judgment of the department, the person requesting reciprocal certification has met the equivalent of the provisions of this subchapter in examinations.

NR 114.35(3) (3) All certificates shall expire 3 years from the date of issuance. Certificates may be updated to show additional subclasses after passing an examination, but the original expiration date shall remain on the certificate. Updating a certificate for any reason, except renewal of certification as described in s. NR 114.36 does not extend or change the expiration date. Certificates shall only be renewed subject to the requirements of s. NR 114.36.

NR 114.35 History History: Cr. Register, December, 2000, No. 540, eff. 1-1-01.

NR 114.36 NR 114.36 Renewal of certification.

NR 114.36(1) (1) A person who desires to renew a certificate shall submit a renewal application, the renewal fee and evidence of fulfilling the continuing education requirements of sub. (2).

NR 114.36(2) (2) Certified water system operators require 6 hours of continuing education per 3-year renewal period. Evidence of these hours shall be submitted on forms approved or provided by the department for department required or approved training courses that they have successfully completed during the 3 year period. These may include, but are not limited to courses sponsored by the department, courses at any university or technical school, technical sessions at meetings of professional organizations, in-house training and correspondence courses.

NR 114.36(3) (3) Failure to successfully complete and document the appropriate number of hours of continuing education training within the 3-year period shall result in rejection of a certificate renewal application.

NR 114.36(4) (4) A person whose certification has expired may, within one year after expiration, be reinstated by submitting a renewal application, the renewal fee, the late penalty fee and evidence of the continuing education requirements of sub. (2). A person not renewing within the one-year period after expiration will have to apply to take the necessary examinations for a new certificate.

NR 114.36 History History: Cr. Register, December, 2000, No. 540, eff. 1-1-01.

NR 114.37 NR 114.37 Sanctions.

NR 114.37(1) (1) The department may, on its own motion, make investigations and conduct hearings and may, on its own motion or on a signed and verified written complaint, revoke, suspend or refuse to renew as provided in this section any operators certificate, or reprimand the operator if the department finds that the holder of the certificate has done any of the following:

NR 114.37(1)(a) (a) Made a material misstatement in the application for certification or any application for a renewal of certification.

NR 114.37(1)(b) (b) Demonstrated incompetence to operate the system.

NR 114.37(1)(c) (c) Failed to notify the department of a violation of a maximum contaminant level as required in ch. NR 809 or the construction requirements of ch. NR 811 by the operator-in-charge of a water system operation.

NR 114.37(1)(d) (d) Failed to provide public notification of a violation of ch. NR 809.

NR 114.37(1)(e) (e) Falsified any monitoring, operating or other records submitted to the department, or provided by the department.

NR 114.37(1)(f) (f) By intentional or negligent action, caused or significantly contributed to a violation of any provision of ch. 281 or 283, Stats., or any administrative codes, permits or orders adopted or issued under those chapters.

NR 114.37(1)(g) (g) Used deception or any form of dishonesty when taking an examination, or removed examination materials from the examination site.

NR 114.37(2) (2) Notice of revocation of, suspension of or refusal to renew a certificate shall be served on the certified operator and shall state the reasons for revocation, suspension or refusal to renew.

NR 114.37(3) (3) Revocation of, suspension of or refusal to renew a certificate shall take effect on the 10th day after the notice is served, unless the certified operator files a written answer with the department prior to the 10th day. If an answer is filed, the revocation, suspension of or refusal to renew is stayed and the department shall conduct a hearing on the matter within 30 days after receipt of the answer. At least 10 days prior to the date of the hearing, the department shall send a written notice to the operator indicating the date, time and location of the hearing. The final determination of the department, including the basis for the decision, shall be provided in writing to the operator. A suspended operator may not be the operator-in-charge of a facility for the duration of the suspension.

NR 114.37(4) (4) Application may be made for taking the necessary examinations for a new certificate one year after the date of revocation or refusal to renew.

NR 114.37(5) (5) Any order revoking or suspending a certificate is subject to judicial review as provided in ch. 227, Stats.

NR 114.37 History History: Cr. Register, December, 2000, No. 540, eff. 1-1-01; EmR2123: emerg. am. (1) (g), eff. 8-21-21; CR 21-068: am. (1) (g) Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22.

subch. IV of ch. NR 114 Subchapter IV — Certification of Wastewater Treatment Plant Operators

NR 114.50 NR 114.50 Purpose. The purpose of this subchapter is to establish rules for the certification of wastewater treatment plant operators pursuant to s. 281.17 (3), Stats.

NR 114.50 History History: CR 13-054: cr. Register June 2014 No. 702, eff. 7-1-15.

NR 114.51 NR 114.51 Applicability. The provisions of this subchapter are applicable to all owners and operators of wastewater treatment plants as defined in this subchapter and under the coverage of a WPDES permit.

NR 114.51 History History: CR 13-054: cr. Register June 2014 No. 702, eff. 7-1-15.

NR 114.52 NR 114.52 Definitions. In this subchapter:

NR 114.52(1) (1) “Advanced coursework” means education that is beyond the basic knowledge of a particular aspect of wastewater treatment. It concentrates advanced wastewater studies in only a few subjects in blocks of a minimum of 20, 40, 60, or 80 hours. Technical talks or presentations at meetings, single- or part-day classes, or training sessions, seminars, or conferences are not included in this definition.

NR 114.52(2) (2) “Associates degree” means a wastewater treatment related degree earned at a 2-year technical college.

NR 114.52(3) (3) “Certificate” means a printed document issued by the department, pursuant to this subchapter, stating that the operator named therein has met the competency requirements for one or more operator levels and subclasses.

NR 114.52(4) (4) “Certified operator” means a person who has meet the requirements of this subchapter and has been issued a certificate by the department to work at a given level and subclasses of wastewater treatment plants.

NR 114.52(5) (5) “Department” means the department of natural resources.

NR 114.52(6) (6) “Direct responsible charge” means having responsibility for providing on-site technical direction in the operations of a wastewater treatment plant.

NR 114.52(7) (7) “Experience” means the daily hands-on operation and maintenance of a wastewater treatment plant as provided in pars. (a), (b), and (c). Treatment plant managers providing daily on-site technical supervision of the operator or operators performing those tasks may be eligible for claiming experience.

NR 114.52(7)(a) (a) The first twelve months of claimed experience shall be subclass specific.

NR 114.52(7)(b) (b) Subsequent months of claimed experience may be any general wastewater operational experience.

NR 114.52(7)(c) (c) One year of experience is based on full-time employment at a treatment plant or 1,000 hours of cumulative experience, over a minimum of 12 months, for part-time operators.

NR 114.52(8) (8) “Graduate degree” means an advanced degree, M.S. or Ph.D., from an accredited college or university with graduate studies and emphasis in wastewater treatment or water pollution control engineering.

NR 114.52(9) (9) “Health and safety training” means classes relating to wastewater treatment plant operations and maintenance and includes but not limited to confined space, excavation, hearing conservation, water safety, blood-borne pathogens, CPR — First Aid, mechanical and electrical safety, fall protection, hazardous plant chemicals as well as others.

NR 114.52(10) (10) “Industrial wastewater treatment plant” means a privately owned wastewater treatment plant for treating liquid wastes resulting from any process of industry, manufacture, trade, or business or the development of any natural resources.

NR 114.52(11) (11) “Level” means the basic or advanced classification assigned to a wastewater treatment plant operator pursuant to this subchapter.

NR 114.52(12) (12) “Major contributing industry” means an industrial or commercial facility that is a user of a municipally owned wastewater treatment plant, and has a waste which the department determines has, or may have, a significant impact, either singly or in combination with other wastes, on a wastewater treatment plant or on the quality of effluent from a wastewater treatment plant.

NR 114.52(13) (13) “Mechanical plant” means a plant that is designed and constructed with a series of steel or concrete basins using pumps, pipes, and other equipment to actively convey and treat wastewater. Pond, lagoon, or natural systems are not part of this definition.

NR 114.52(14) (14) “Operate” means to be in direct responsible charge of a subclass or subclasses of operations at a wastewater treatment plant and a sanitary sewage collection system.

NR 114.52(15) (15) “Operator-in-charge” means the person designated by the owner of the wastewater treatment plant to be in direct responsible charge of a subclass of operations of a treatment plant or of a sanitary sewage collection system and involved in hands-on day-to-day operations.

NR 114.52(16) (16) “Owner” means the state, county, town, sanitary district, city, village, metropolitan sewerage district, corporation, firm, company, institution, association, utility district, school district, sewerage commission, or individual owning or operating a WPDES permitted wastewater treatment plant.

NR 114.52(17) (17) “Satellite sewage collection system” means a municipally owned or private sewage collection system that conveys wastewater to another sewerage system which provides the wastewater treatment.

NR 114.52(18) (18) “Sanitary sewage collection system” means the common sanitary sewers, interceptor sewers, pump stations and supporting equipment in a community that receive wastewater from buildings and conveys it to a wastewater treatment plant.

NR 114.52(19) (19) “Subclass” means a letter assigned a treatment plant based upon a particular type of treatment process at the plant and to the letter assigned to a person based on passing a subclass examination for a specific operational process.

NR 114.52(20) (20) “Tertiary phosphorus removal” means the advanced physical and chemical removal of phosphorus to achieve very low phosphorus concentrations not achievable by conventional methods.

NR 114.52(21) (21) “Undergraduate degree” means a Bachelor’s degree earned at a 4-year accredited college or university in which at least 240 hours were wastewater treatment related.

NR 114.52(22) (22) “Wastewater treatment plant” means a facility that provides for the treatment of sanitary or industrial wastewater or both. The following types of facilities are excluded from operator certification:

NR 114.52(22)(a) (a) Facilities defined as private sewage systems in s. 145.01 (12), Stats.

NR 114.52(22)(b) (b) Pretreatment facilities which discharge to a public sewer system for treatment.

NR 114.52(22)(c) (c) Industrial wastewater treatment which consists solely of a land disposal system.

NR 114.52(22)(d) (d) Digesters at agricultural operations that reuse, recycle or landspread the treated wastes.

NR 114.52(22)(e) (e) Concentrated aquatic production facilities (fish hatcheries) in which no biological treatment process is utilized.

NR 114.52(23) (23) “WPDES permit” means a permit issued to a publicly owned treatment plant under s. 283.31, Stats., for the purposes of controlling pollutant discharge.

NR 114.52 History History: CR 13-054: cr. Register June 2014 No. 702, eff. 7-1-15; correction in (7) (intro.) made under s. 35.17, Stats., Register June 2014 No. 702.

NR 114.53 NR 114.53 General requirements.

NR 114.53(1) (1) Every WPDES permitted treatment plant shall have a designated operator-in-charge holding a current and valid certificate pursuant to this subchapter. The designated operator-in-charge shall be certified at the level and in all subclasses of the treatment plant, except laboratory. Treatment plant owners shall notify the department of any changes in the operator-in-charge within 30 days.

NR 114.53(2) (2) Owners of treatment plants, which includes both the treatment plant and sanitary sewage collection system to it, shall have a designated collection system operator-in-charge for sanitary sewage collection systems. The designated operator-in-charge shall have passed and be certified in the sanitary sewage collection system subclass. For owners of satellite sanitary sewage collections systems, collection system operator certification is voluntary.

NR 114.53(3) (3) All wastewater treatment plants holding a WPDES permit that have a registered or certified laboratory shall have at least one operator that works in the laboratory certified at the basic level in the laboratory subclass.

NR 114.53(4) (4) Upon a change in a wastewater treatment plant’s classifications caused by the addition of a new subclass listed in s. NR 114.56 (4), the operator-in-charge shall have 12 months to pass the necessary subclass examinations and to gain the one year of subclass specific experience.

NR 114.53(5) (5) Upon a change in a wastewater treatment plant’s level of operations from basic to advanced, the operator-in-charge shall have 36 months to obtain advanced certification, provided the person is making earnest efforts towards advanced certification and that the treatment plant is in compliance with all terms and conditions of its WPDES permit.

NR 114.53(6) (6) Owners of basic wastewater treatment plants, in the event of the unexpected loss of the operator-in-charge, may designate an operator-in-training certified in all subclasses of the plant as the operator-in-charge for a period up to twelve months.

NR 114.53(7) (7) Owners of advanced wastewater treatment plants, in the event of the unexpected loss of the designated operator-in-charge, shall ensure the continued proper operation and maintenance of the treatment plant by another advanced certified operator in all subclasses of the plant.

NR 114.53 History History: CR 13-054: cr. Register June 2014 No. 702, eff. 7-1-15.

NR 114.54 NR 114.54 Examinations and applications.

NR 114.54(1) (1) Examinations, education, and on-the-job experience shall be used to determine knowledge, skill, and the ability of the applicant to perform duties at a wastewater treatment plant. A score of 75 percent or higher shall be a passing score on each examination. An applicant desiring to be certified to perform duties at a wastewater treatment plant shall submit a completed exam application to the department. The department shall approve or deny the application within 10 business days of receipt of the application, unless the application involves a revoked or suspended certificate, in which case, the department shall approve or deny the application within 35 business days of receipt of the application. Fees as listed under s. NR 114.55 shall accompany the application.

NR 114.54 Note Note: The application form is available on the following website: https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/ or by writing to the Department of Natural Resources, Operator Certification Program, PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921.

NR 114.54(2) (2) The department will primarily rely on an organization under contract with the department to provide examinations. The department may conduct examinations on a case-by-case basis when necessary to accommodate applicants’ needs. An organization under contract to provide examinations may charge fees to cover the cost of providing any exam under this section as allowed under its contract with the department.

NR 114.54 Note Note: The special U subclass exam will only be a written exam conducted by the department on an as needed basis for examinees with approved applications.

NR 114.54(3) (3) Basic examinations shall consist of 25 to 50 questions specific to the subclass. The wastewater treatment plant advanced examination shall consist of 100 questions with content from all subclasses.

NR 114.54(5) (5) Examination results shall be made available to an applicant within 30 days of the examination date.

NR 114.54(6) (6) An applicant who fails to pass an examination may apply to the department for reexamination.

NR 114.54(7) (7) The department shall provide study guides pertaining to each subclass.

NR 114.54(8) (8) A wastewater treatment plant operator shall take and successfully complete the general wastewater examination and subclass examinations to become an operator-in-training in each subclass.

NR 114.54(9) (9) A wastewater treatment plant operator shall take and successfully complete the requirements of sub. (8) and meet one-year subclass-specific experience to become a basic level operator in a subclass.

NR 114.54(10) (10) A wastewater treatment plant operator may take the wastewater treatment advanced certification examination to earn four points towards advanced certification according to the table in s. NR 114.57 (1) (c).

NR 114.54 History History: CR 13-054: cr. Register June 2014 No. 702, eff. 7-1-15; EmR2123: am. (1), r. and recr. (2), r. (4), am. (5), (6), eff. 8-21-21; CR 21-068: am. (1), r. and recr. (2), r. (4), am. (5), (6) Register April 2022 No. 796, eff. 5-1-22.