Operational Planning and Risk Assessment

In response to the requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act, BMROSS has provided Operational Planning and Risk Assessment services to help clients meet the requirements of the Drinking Water Quality Management Standard (DWQMS).

The development of an Operational Plan and the accreditation of a water Operating Authority are two of the five components required to become licensed to operate a municipal drinking water system. The requirements are identified in the Standard. The DWQMS is a Quality Management System approach to the operation and management of public drinking water systems that combines the quality management principles of the International Standards Organization (ISO) with the risk assessment/risk management approach of the Hazards Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) method. Under these requirements, both the system owner and the system operating authority have defined roles and responsibilities.

The Ministry of the Environment encourages water system operating authorities to carry out the development of Operational Plans in-house, using a committee made up of management and operations staff. A significant benefit of doing it in-house is the knowledge gained through participating in the development process. Our firm strongly supports this approach and focuses on providing facilitation services throughout the process.

SERVICES

BMROSS has provided leadership, support and advice to clients carrying out operational planning and risk assessment. Our detailed knowledge of water system design, related legislation and operating requirements, complements our client’s detailed operational knowledge to ensure that the technical aspects of the Operational Plan are met thoroughly and correctly.

Our services have included:

• Planning and support for carrying out the project implementation plan.
• Participation in the risk analysis and response development program.
• Documentation of team activities.
• Development of policies and procedures.
• Provision of drafting and document preparation services.
• Identification of training resources to implement the program.
• Establishment of a methodology for carrying out the internal audit.
• Presentation of the Plan to Council.

BMROSS has provided these services to a number of municipalities. In addition, a member of our staff provided Project Management services to the OWWA – DWQMS Peer Support Needs Evaluation and Program Development which included working with the Ministry of the Environment DWQMS development team and pilot program group.

In addition to specific assignments, we have organized and presented workshops to inform our clients of their responsibilities with respect to the legislation.