Browse our comprehensive FAQ for commonly asked questions relating to municipal wastewater operator certification, industrial wastewater operator certification, industrial stormwater operator certification, construction stormwater operator certification, and soil erosion and sediment control plan review and design operator certification.
You'll find questions applying to all wastewater and stormwater operator certification courses at the top, followed by specific questions for different operator certification programs.
The Board of Certification must provide recommendation to the Department on the issuance or denial of certificates, so a Board meeting must be held before results are released. The Board typically meets approximately one month following each exam date, and results are also usually mailed the same week as the Board meeting. Operators can reasonably expect their results in the mail approximately 6-8 weeks following an exam date.
Once an exam has been completed. Preliminary results will be sent to you via email within two to four weeks. Your formal certificate and results will be mailed to your home address within one month following the release of the preliminary results.
Yes. Education and experience requirements for each of the classifications are described in the Certification Board Policy. Please visit the Course Information section to learn more about Board Approved Semester Hour Equivalent (SHE) Courses that can be used to qualify for the A and B examinations.
Yes. Industrial/commercial wastewater classifications are associated with the waste treatment occurring at the facility as Physical (A), Chemical (B), and/or Biological (C). Sub-categories for classifications are identified as Level 1, 2, or 3 and those levels correspond with the amount of education required for that classification. Education and experience requirements for each of the classifications are further described in the Industrial/Commercial Certification Practices document.
There are no experience requirements for these certifications. The following are the minimum education requirements:
Exams for both Municipal and Industrial classifications are administered in person twice a year. All classification exams, except for the Municipal A and B classifications, use multiple-choice Scantron format. The Municipal A and B exams are essay style questions, requiring full written answers.
Exams are in a virtual format administered via an online platform (EvaExam). All exams are multiple choice questions. You will be sent a link the date you select at registration. You have 24 hours to open the exam. Once you access the link, you have two (2) hours to complete the exam.
Fill out the renewal form, attach CEC certificates and pay the $95 renewal fee via credit card or check. Email renewal materials to EGLE-WRD-OpCert@Michigan.gov.
Fill out the renewal form and pay the $95 renewal fee via credit card or check. Email renewal materials to EGLE-WRD-OpCert@Michigan.gov.
Replacement certification requests must be submitted to the EGLE WRD Operator Certification Unit EGLE-WRD-OpCert@Michigan.gov and should include the operator’s full name and all requested certification numbers.
This is the process for municipal wastewater, industrial wastewater, industrial stormwater, construction stormwater, and SESC PRD operator certification (licenses).
As soon as the certificate expiration date passes and a person fails to renew, the certificate is considered expired. Persons with an expired certificate are eligible for employment at a sewerage system; however, they cannot serve as the “certified operator."
A certificate that has expired may be reinstated within 1-year from the expiration date of the certificate only when an individual has completed the necessary continuing education requirements as prorated from the certificate’s expiration date. If a certificate is not reinstated within 1-year, the individual will lose their certification and will be required to re-test for the desired certification.
As described above, certificates expire July 1. If an operator has not renewed their license on or before July 1, their certification is considered expired. Operators have until August 31 to still submit their renewal paperwork, and get their certificate renewed without having to retake the exam. As of September 1, certificates are terminated for operators who have not submitted their renewal paperwork, and they will have to retake the exam to regain their certification.
Individuals interested in becoming certified wastewater and/or stormwater operators may obtain certification by completing EGLE-approved training and passing the required examination.
An operator may hold multiple wastewater and stormwater certifications (a municipal certification, industrial certification, industrial stormwater certification, construction stormwater certification, and/or a soil erosion and sedimentation control plan review and design certification).
Operators holding multiple wastewater and/or stormwater certification are required to fulfill all requirements of each certification types.
Credit card payments, paper checks, and money orders are acceptable forms of payment. To pay by check or money order, please request a check payment form when you email the completed application/renewal documentation to EGLE-WRD-OpCert@Michigan.gov.
Contact EGLE-WRD-OpCert@Michigan.gov if you cannot attend your scheduled exam date.
Contact Marian Maier at MaierM3@Michigan.gov if you need to reschedule your stormwater exam date or if you cannot attend your scheduled date.
Yes. In fact, EGLE has a memorandum of understanding with the Michigan Department of Corrections to allow for incarcerated individuals to earn stormwater and wastewater certifications.
Operators can qualify for stormwater and wastewater examinations even if they have a criminal record.
The minimum age for an operator applying for an exam is 18 years old.
Yes. Your renewal certificate will be mailed to your home address within 4-6 weeks of submitting your renewal paperwork.
Individuals renewing a certificate are issued certificates on a 3-year renewal cycle, provided they have met the continuing education renewal requirement for the highest level of certification held, submitted the completed renewal application, and paid the $95 fee. A certificate will expire on one of the quarterly expiration dates, as shown below, regardless of the calendar year.
Replacement certification requests must be submitted to the EGLE WRD Operator Certification team at EGLE-WRD-OpCert@Michigan.gov and should include the operator’s full name and all requested certification numbers.
You have 90 days from the date of the exam to pay for it. If payment is not received within 90 days your test is considered an automatic failure, and you will not be allowed to retest until any previous exam fees have been paid.
Any site where an earth change over one (1) acre in size will be made, with a point source discharge to the water of the state, must be under the oversight of a certified Construction Stormwater (CSW) Operator.
Sites with an earth change over five (5) acres in size with a point source discharge to waters of the state will not be issued a Notice of Coverage until they have a certified CSW Operator for the site. The certified operator can be anyone, from the landowner to an excavator, as long as they hold a valid CSW operator certificate.
If you are working for a Part 91 Enforcing Agency or Authorized Public Agency (see Part 91 Agency list), all individuals responsible for making decisions related to soil erosion and sedimentation control are required to have a valid certificate of training. EGLE has determined that the Construction Stormwater Operator Certification is equivalent to inspector level training for Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control. The Construction Stormwater Operator Certification is also the prerequisite for SESC Plan Review & Design Training. All employees or contractors for the Part 91 Agency who are responsible for making Soil Erosion related decisions for the Part 91 agency are required to have, at a minimum, inspector level training.
Individuals who work for a Part 91 Enforcing Agency or Authorized Public Agency (see Part 91 Agency list), and responsible for plan review and/or design, permit issuance determinations, and decisions on enforcement actions are required to have a valid SESC Plan Review & Design Training certificate.
At a minimum, at least one individual must have SESC Plan Review & Design Training. Consultants or others may take SESC Plan Review & Design Training to further their understanding of the Part 91 plan review and design expectations; however, the ability to make decisions under the certification is contingent upon employment or contracting with a Part 91 agency.
No. Provided you have maintained a valid Construction Stormwater Operator Certification, you do not need to retake the examination at this time. If you fail to renew your certification, you will be required to retake the exam.
Yes. If you have a valid Construction Stormwater Operator Certification at the time you register and take the SESC Plan Review & Design exam, you may take the SESC Plan Review & Design Training.
You can find detailed information about the CSW operator certification and the SESC Plan Review & Design certification by going to the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) Water Resources Division’s (WRD’s) soil erosion webpage, Michigan.gov/SoilErosion, and selecting the first or second link under the heading “Training ” titled: “Training: Construction Stormwater” or “ Training: Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Plan Review and Design”.
You can also visit the operator certification webpage.
If you only need operator/inspector training, then you can go by the Construction Stormwater Operator certificate and expiration date.
No, if an individual needs both a CSWO & SESC PRD certifications, there are two options
Option 1. Register for the exams in different exam cycles.
Option 2. Register for both the CSWO and SESC PRD in the same exam cycle.
No, SESC training requirements have always had an operator/inspector component. Based on feedback from individuals required to obtain certifications in Construction Stormwater and training in Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control, EGLE decided to create an inspection level certification that include Construction Stormwater Operator elements and separate it from the plan review and design elements of Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control.
This separation was to allow individuals who only inspect sites and who will never design or review a SESC plan to have a single exam which covers both SESC inspector training and Certified Stormwater Operator Training. Individuals who are required to obtain SESC Plan Review & Design Training because they do SESC plan review and design, must have a good understanding of how the SESC measure’s function and how they must be maintained; therefore, EGLE decided that the Certified Stormwater Operator certification exam is a prerequisite for the more advanced Plan Review & Design Training. SESC Plan Review & Design certification has always included an inspector requirements portion and a plan review and design portion, it has now just been separated into two parts.
Yes, the permittee must maintain copies of inspection logs for 3 years.
Yes. If the person performing the inspections is working for a Part 91 Agency, one (1) inspection can count for both Construction Stormwater Operator requirements and SESC Inspector requirements. This situation commonly occurs with Authorized Public Agencies. Private construction sites can utilize the Part 91 Agency Inspector as the Construction Stormwater Operator if the Part 91 Agency agrees to perform this service. In those cases, the SESC inspection would count as a Construction Stormwater inspection and vice versa.
NOTE: The inspection frequency for Stormwater Operators can be more frequent than that required of Part 91 SESC inspectors. Stormwater Operator inspections must be conducted at least once weekly and within 24 hours of any precipitation event that result in a discharge of storm water from the site.
Depending on whether you work for a Part 91 Agency, you may review and approve your own soil erosion plans or issue a permit to your agency. It is important to note, however, that only a person employed by or contracting for a Part 91 Agency can utilize his or her SESC Plan Review & Design certification in such a manner. SESC Plan Review & Design certification for individuals who do not work for a Part 91 Agency is informational only.
Questions related to who might need training should be directed to EGLE WRD district staff.
Questions related to operator certification should contact EGLE-WRD-OpCert@Michigan.gov.
Anyone who wants to obtain an Industrial Stormwater Certified Operator Certification.
The industrial Stormwater Operator Certification fee is $30, payable to the State of Michigan.
The industrial Stormwater Certification renewal fee is $95, payable to the State of Michigan.
The Certified Operator Training Manual can be found on the Industrial Stormwater website at Michigan.gov/IndustrialStormWater.
