TSTC to offer water plant operation license courses

(ABILENE, Texas) – Two courses at Texas State Technical College will provide water plant operators the chance to have employees earn a license.

TSTC’s Workforce Training and Continuing Education has scheduled two 20-hour courses for water system employees. Cindy Brunett, TSTC’s executive director of Workforce Training and Continuing Education, said it will help fill a need in many West Texas communities.

“The need for licensed water and wastewater operators is high in West Texas,” she said. “We are pleased to be offering these courses to help fill the needs of our communities.”

The week of Nov. 6, TSTC’s Abilene campus will host a 20-hour License D course. This license, according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), is for entry level water and wastewater operators. 

Also at the Abilene campus, during the week of Nov. 13, the 20-hour License C course will be conducted. This is the second level in the license process and anyone with a License D is eligible to register. 

Brunett said the curriculum for both courses have been approved by the TCEQ.

“We planned these courses as the state is addressing the need for water over the next decade,” she said. “This will help our cities meet the requirements laid out in Senate Bill 28 that passed during the regular session this year.”

Senate Bill 28 dedicates $1 billion to upgrade Texas’ water infrastructure and jumpstart water supply projects, from marine desalination to treating produced water, which is water that comes up from the ground during the oil fracking process.

Brunett said the courses will also be held at TSTC’s West Texas campuses in the spring.

“We want to make sure we provide training to future operators of the water system in each of our West Texas communities,” she said. “It is important this training is available throughout West Texas.”

For more information about the courses, email Doug Jeter, TSTC’s project manager for Workforce Training and Continuing Education, at doug.jeter@tstc.edu

For more information about TSTC, visit tstc.edu.