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Information for Water and Wastewater System Owners

Owners of water and wastewater systems are responsible for staffing systems with certified, supervising operators. The supervising operator of a system must hold a certificate equal to or greater than the classification of the system under that operator's control. For example, the supervising operator of a water treatment class 2 system must hold at least a water treatment level 2 certificate.


All requirements pertaining to the classification of system, the certification of operators, and the supervising operators responsibilities can be found in the Water and Wastewater Operator Certification and Training Regulations (18 AAC 74). System owners should be familiar with the requirements of 18 AAC 74 (PDF)


To learn more about the requirements for your system, follow these simple steps:

Step 1:

Determine the classification of your system. You can determine the classification by searching the System Classification Database.

Keep your search general to get a broad list of systems. For example, if you are looking for the Thunder Mountain Mobile Park, try searching for just "Thunder". You will be shown a list of possible systems. From that list, select your system.

Step 2:

Review the section of the Water and Wastewater Operator Certification and Training Regulations (PDF) that applies to your system. If your system is classified as a Small Untreated or Treated system, review Article Two of the regulations (beginning on page 25 of the regulations.) If your system is classified as a water treatment, water distribution, wastewater collection, wastewater treatment, or wastewater stabilization pond (lagoon) system, review Article One of the regulations (beginning on page 2 of the regulations.)

Step 3:

Review the links shown to the right for more information depending on the classification of your system.

Step 4:

Contact the Operator Certification Program if you have further questions. Program staff can be reached at 907-465-1139 or dec.opcert@alaska.gov.

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