Three Times Is A Charm For Virginia's Terminal Velocity At 2012 Operations Challenge Competition

Reigning champs place first among 37 teams from across the U.S. and Canada

The Water Environment Federation (WEF) proudly announces that the 2011 and 2010 reigning champions, Terminal Velocity from the Virginia Water Environment Association, once again took top honors during yesterday’s Operations Challenge competition—held as part of WEFTEC 2012, WEF’s 85th Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference, which is taking place this week at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center.

Coached by Elijah Smith and Bobby Williams, the Terminal Velocity team of Steve Motley, Steve Poe, Jason Truitt, and Captain Donnie Cagle competed against 36 teams from across the United States and Canada during the fast-paced, two-day event.

“We feel like this is a great victory for us. It was our first official competition since last year's WEFTEC event, and we have had to overcome the retirement of a veteran team member,” said Cagle. “It is special to us because it is only the second time in the history of Operations Challenge for a team to win three years in a row.”

The full Operations Challenge competition results include:

Division 1

First Place: Terminal Velocity
Virginia Water Environment Association
Cities of Franklin and Virginia Beach, Va.

Second Place: Liquid Force
Water Environment Association of South Carolina
Mount Pleasant Waterworks, Mount Pleasant, S.C.

Third Place: TRA CReWSers
Water Environment Association of Texas
Trinity River Authority, Dallas, Texas

Division 2

First Place: ReWa Blackwater Bruisers
Water Environment Association of South Carolina
Renewable Water Resources, Greenville, S.C.

Second Place: OCWA Jets
Water Environment Association of Ontario
Ontario Clean Water Agency, Toronto, Ontario

Third Place: Aqua Techs
Water Environment Association of Texas
City of Dallas, Texas

Now in its 25th year, Operations Challenge has grown from an original 22-team event to its current 37s-team, two-division format. Winners are determined by a weighted point system for five events including collection systems, laboratory, process control, maintenance and safety. The events are designed to test the diverse skills required for the operation and maintenance of wastewater treatment facilities, their collection systems and laboratories—all vital to the protection of public health and the environment.

WEFTEC is recognized as the world’s largest annual water quality event and provides the latest technologies and services for water environment preservation, restoration, and sustainability. WEFTEC 2012 is taking place at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center from September 29 to October 3.

For more information,visit www.weftec.org.

About WEF
Founded in 1928, the Water Environment Federation (WEF) is a not-for-profit technical and educational organization of 36,000 individual members and 75 affiliated Member Associations representing water quality professionals around the world. WEF members, Member Associations and staff proudly work to achieve our mission to provide bold leadership, champion innovation, connect water professionals, and leverage knowledge to support clean and safe water worldwide. For more information, visit www.wef.org.