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Water Quality Monitoring, Vivianne Servant

Alberta Environment and Protected Areas (EPA) has monitored multiple sites of surface and drinking water since 1995, Vivianne joins us to discuss the results from this monitoring and share the implications this has on the quality of the waters. 

Vivianne has enjoyed a career developing and advancing pesticide training and monitoring. For 30 years, she established the Canadian standards of pesticide education, training, and certification as co-chair of the Canadian Federal, Provincial, Territories (FPT) Standing Subcommittee while additionally working for Alberta Environment and Protected Areas (EPA). At EPA, Vivianne was an inspector and investigator for 12 years before spending the next 18 working as an Alberta Pesticide Certification Specialist. 

She has spent her time post-retirement continuing to research the effects of pesticides on human health and the environment. This includes conducting in-person and online presentations to report the findings. 

MRLs 101, Andrea Sawatzky

Andrea Sawatzky, Pesticide Compliance and Enforcement Officer at the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA), brings insight into pesticide Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) to the Pesticide Applicator Workshop. She’ll define the scientific basis for setting MRLs, the dietary exposure & risk assessments, as well as the differences in MRLs. 

Thompson, Manitoba native, Andrea, spent a chunk of her childhood growing up in Indonesia and Singapore before returning to Manitoba where she obtained a dual Bachelor of Science in Zoology and Agriculture. She started her career in Alberta, working as a Primary Products Inspector/Grader for the Meat Hygiene department of what is now the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. For more than 20 years, she’s held her position at PMRA as a Pesticide Compliance and Enforcement Officer. 

Do You 'Walk the Line?', Marcie Schultz

Marcie Schultz is a Regional Pesticide Officer with the Pesticide Compliance Program of Health Canada. She regulates the Pest Control Products Act through inspections and education sessions with various industries and pesticide sectors.  

Pesticides are regulated by Health Canada to ensure they pose a minimal risk to human health and the environment. Under authority of the Pest Control Products Act, new pesticides are registered after a stringent, science-based evaluation that ensures any risks are acceptable.  

Marcie will correlate the lyrics to a popular country song by Johnny Cash to the regulatory requirements of promoting and using pesticides to pesticide applicators like you have the knowledge and tools necessary to ‘Walk the Line.’ 

2023 Incident Statistics, Devon Smiegielski & Glenora Coles

Devon Smiegielski, Pesticide Certification Specialist, and Glenora Coles, Pesticide Registration Specialist, join us from Alberta Environment and Protected Areas to speak about the 2023 Compliance Statistics, review incidents closed in the last year, as well as updates to training and certification. 

This session will be available for one credit in regulations. 

Keys to Successful Herbicide Applications, Bridgette Readel

Quality weed control requires water, humidity, and nozzles – to get it right, you must perfect the recipe. Bridgette Readel has nearly 30 years of experience in crop protection as a technical agronomist and in sales. She brings insight into each ingredient in effective weed control and will share the best practices to help improve what you’re doing in the field. 

Additionally, she will review sprayer agitation, adjuvant use for best weed control, and effective use of active ingredients. Bridgette has previously written federal herbicide labels, giving her a unique perspective on the matter. Currently, she hosts a daily radio show focused on weather and agriculture, as well as a member of the AgMafia – a partnership of agronomists who speak on quality weed control, soil fertility and application technology.