History

Background

The AZ Water Association (AZ Water), formerly known as the Arizona Water & Pollution Control Association (AWPCA), and originally known as the Arizona Sewage and Water Works Association, was formed in 1928 by a statewide group of public health officials, public water utility managers and professional engineers to provide a training organization and industry trade network. Its early focus was sharing information and facilitating the resolution of technical problems experienced in the water and wastewater industry. Over the years, the AWPCA became widely known as an innovator in the water treatment industry, providing a number of new ideas and venues which later became incorporated into training programs developed and offered on the national level by the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and the Water Environment Federation (WEF), formerly known as the Water Pollution Control Association (WPCA). The most notable of those training innovations is the Tri-State Seminar On-The-River (TSS).

During the 1980s, the AZ Water used a number of training tools (including but not limited to the annual association conference, the Operators' Forum, certification exam review preparation classes, and one-day seminars) to prepare operators-in-training for entry-level certification and provide more advanced training for career development and higher certification. The One Day Seminar was very popular, directing the student operators' attention to one topic for an entire day, with a number of speakers covering numerous aspects of the subject. Indeed, it was one of these AZ Water One Day Seminars that led to the Tri-State Seminar On-The-River (TSS).

The Start of a Good Idea – The Beginning

In 1984, the AWPCA Education Committee, led by Dennis Goodson and John Getchell, recognized that operating personnel in rural parts of Arizona were not being well served by the Association training efforts in the Phoenix and Tucson areas. John suggested we develop a joint training effort with California for the western Arizona rural areas using Laughlin, Nevada as a location. Getchell then contacted Art Courtright from the Colorado River Basin Section (CORBS), the local section of the California Water Pollution Control Association (CWPCA), later known as California Water Environment Association (CWEA). A meeting was soon scheduled in Yuma, Arizona with members from both organizations to discuss the concept and the possibility of a partnership.

The resulting first joint-training meeting was held in March. That effort was attended by about 27 and was made possible with the assistance and cooperation of the City of Yuma's Kathy Carroll and Vicki Scott. This meeting grew into today's TSS.

Several people from both organizations attended that first meeting and should be recognized for their vision and volunteerism to bring this idea to life. Meeting quarterly through 1984 and 1985 in Blythe, California, they established the organizational protocols, policies, and procedures that would form the basis for a formal agreement between the sponsoring associations.

1985-1990 – The Formative Years

It took a year from the first genesis meeting in Yuma, Arizona, to stage the first official TSS in September 1985. That 1985 TSS was a one day water and wastewater training session held in the Chamber of Commerce Building in Bullhead City, Arizona. About 75 operators came from Arizona, California and Nevada. John Getchell and Chuck Ohr brought the dunkin doughnuts and made the coffee as well as led the training. Break times were spent skipping stones on the Colorado River from the parking lot and having a smoke outside. The training class included entertainment by Chuck dodging a loose insulation batt falling from the ceiling (unfinished construction). It was evident that the Bullhead City Chamber of Commerce facility was not big enough for the next TSS.

In 1986, the TSS went across the river to Don Laughlin's Riverside Hotel in Laughlin, Nevada. This began about a ten year period during which the TSS would use a number of different Laughlin hotels, sometimes using more than one at a time, experimenting with a chartered bus shuttle, and the use of air-conditioned tents for the manufacturer exhibits and classrooms.

Arizona and Nevada sponsor organizations' volunteers took the lead on most programs and registration-related committees during the first decade; with John Getchell handling Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer duties; Pat Nelson, Annette Duarte, and Brad Colby on registration; Johnny Martinez leading the audio-video equipment committee; Chuck Ohr finding program speakers, conference novelty items, getting publications printed; and Steve Cottrell handling local arrangements, and connections with the hotels.

In 1987, John Getchell asked the Nevada Water Environment Association (NWEA) to become an official TSS sponsoring association. Steve Cottrell, who was active with the Nevada operator certification board and had attended the earlier TSS meetings, volunteered to be their representative. He then served on the TSS Executive Committee and led the Local Arrangements Committee for many years. Steve played a key role in the success of the TSS through his negotiation skills with the Laughlin hotels. The TSS soon became a major factor in the training opportunities initially only for Nevada, California, and Arizona rural operators. Later,as word spread, it became known as a training and family vacation destination for many operators from across the nation.

In 1988, the first manufacturer's exhibits were added and soon became an integral part of the TSS. The exhibitor fees allowed the TSS to underwrite training costs and maintain a low registration fee for each operator attendee. Initially, these exhibits were small table-top displays but later became regular 8 ft. x 10 ft. booths bringing the latest water and wastewater treatment equipment and information. These exhibits provide an educational opportunity to see the latest technology that most operators would likely never experience. Operators owe a debt of gratitude to early TSS Vender Committee Chairs, Lyman Tremble and Greg Terrazas of the CWEA for initiating this effort.

During the remainder of the 1980s, news of the TSS training value spread and attendance continued to grow about 10-15% per year. Although the TSS started as a one topic-one day seminar, it soon became a multi-track training event extending to three days. Local fire codes dictated room capacities and as more operators came, more concurrent sessions had to be scheduled. The TSS informed the Laughlin Chamber of Commerce on more than one occasion about the growing need for a larger meeting facility.

1990-2004 – The Growth Years

In 1990, John Getchell contacted the Cal/Nev Section of the AWWA to inquire about their possibly joining the TSS as a sponsor association. Bringing the Cal/Nev. Section of the AWWA into the TSS would allow the TSS to serve all water and wastewater treatment industry operators in the tri-state area. Don Roberson became the Cal/Nev Section representative on the TSS Executive Committee (and Chair from 1993 to 1994). In the same year, Paul Hendricks of the AWPCA introduced the annual TSS golf tournament to the event. This was also the first year the TSS recognized a volunteer. Chuck Ohr was presented the first TSS Outstanding Service Award and became the first Chair of the TSS Award Committee. The TSS attendance was about 300. Later, in 1994 the TSS Award Program was expanded with the initiation of the Big Bend Canoe Club (BBCC), to recognize senior volunteers who had served the TSS exceptionally and/or for at least ten years.

As TSS attendance soared, more committees formed, and more volunteers from CWEA, NWEA, AZ Water, and the Cal/Nev AWWA were recruited to the share the work. By the millennium, the TSS committee-force had grown to eleven sub-committees filled by as many as 75-100 volunteers. The steady TSS growth into the early 2000s led the TSS Executive Committee to reluctantly recognize that the existing Laughlin facilities were simply inadequate and the annual meeting must move to a location better able to accommodate the TSS needs. So, we made the move to Primm, Nevada, in 2004.

2005-Present – Maturity Reached

As the Tri-State Seminar has grown, we have been fortunate to have had a sufficient number of volunteers to make it the success it has become. The continued growth of new volunteers has made it possible now that no single person has to commit so much that their individual participation is overwhelming. It's encouraging to now see the number of volunteers involved making the TSS a pleasant success. 2008 was the first year we have seen the total participation drop in the 24 year history of the TSS. Nevertheless, cautious optimism still encourages the volunteers as the twenty-fifth anniversary is about to be presented.

Concepts, Policies, Agreements

The following concepts, policies and agreements have been incorporated into a multilateral agreement among the sponsoring associations. Originally the four sponsor-associations who developed the TSS included the California-Nevada Section of the AWWA. Presently, only three sponsor-associations remain with the TSS: AZ Water Association, NWEA, and CWEA (CORBS).

1. The TSS would provide training focused only on practical, application-oriented training objectives that could be used on the job upon return from the seminar;

2. The TSS would be affordable to the line operator (i.e., turning the valve, reading the meter, laying the pipe, or unclogging a main, etc.), not just the manager, engineer, and public health or regulatory official;

3. The TSS would be scheduled at a time which would least conflict with other established training meetings such as the annual local and national professional associations conferences, and at a time easily remembered (every year the TSS days are the same days of the last week in September; originally, this was a Thursday, Friday, Saturday; now it is the Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday);

4. Each sponsoring association would equally share in the volunteer responsibilities and asset acquisition. The net proceeds would be divided according to sponsoring association attendance percentage participation;

5. Should a sponsor association leave the TSS organization, the departing association forfeited its TSS-related assets to the TSS;

6. In 1990, the TSS started an incentive program to reward volunteers for active participation. This includes an annual award banquet program at the end of each year's TSS to recognize the individual and employer sacrifices which have contributed to the TSS success. The current awards banquet is also the occasion for reporting the results of the completed TSS and to start working on the next one;

7. A TSS organization by-laws was finalized and agreed to by each of the sponsoring organizations;

8. The Executive Committee has been expanded to four (4) members from each sponsoring organization. Executive Committee responsibilities are rotated among the sponsor association representatives in such a manner that each sponsor-association shares equally in the executive authority;

9. An Awards Committee was established in 1990 to recognize individuals,employers, institutions, and organizations who have contributed to the TSS success.

Participants* Summary

*Some of these numbers are estimates only. Records will be checked to obtain more accurate data.

Respectively submitted,
Charles E. Ohr, TSS Historian