e-Edge

APEGS VIEW : AGM

March 1st, 2021


Regulating the professions. Protecting the public.

Online

April 27 – May 1, 2021

Professional Development Streams
Plenary Keynote Speakers

April 27 – April 29, 2021

Online Awards Ceremony

Friday, April 30, 2021

91st Annual Meeting

Saturday, May 1, 2021

Registration is open April 2021

www.apegs.ca

Professional Development Opportunities

Attendance at these sessions will qualify for CPD credits in Informal activity, unless otherwise noted.

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Conference Opening with President Andrew Lockwood, P.Eng., FEC

Session Facilitated by: Bob McDonald, P.Eng., FEC, FGC (Hon.), FCSSE – APEGS Executive Director and Registrar

Keynote Speaker – James Casey

We are in a time of unprecedented rapid change in the regulatory landscape in Canada. This session will focus on the key trends affecting the regulation of professions across Canada including the engineering profession. The session will address the evolution in societal attitudes and public policy driving the changes. Regulators need to reflect on whether these changes represent threats or opportunities or both. Most importantly, the session will generate ideas on how professions can respond to these trends in a proactive and strategic way.

James (Jim) T. Casey, Q.C. is a partner at Field Law working in the firm’s Edmonton office. His primary areas of practice are professional regulation and acting as a labour arbitrator. Jim founded Field Law’s Professional Regulatory Group and acts as legal counsel to numerous professional organizations. Working with his colleagues, Jim is considered to be one of the leading authorities in the law of professional regulation. He provides advice in all areas including discipline, registration, unauthorized practice, mobility, governance issues and development of legislation.

He has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada, all levels of Courts in Alberta and numerous administrative tribunals. Jim also acts as independent counsel to professional regulatory tribunals.

Jim focuses a significant part of his practice on developing and providing training for regulators, their tribunals and staff.

Jim is the author of many publications including The Regulation of Professions in Canada which is considered to be the leading legal text in professional regulation. “The Regulation of Professions in Canada” is used by regulators and legal counsel across Canada and has been relied on by numerous tribunals and courts, including the Supreme Court of Canada.

Jim’s newest book published in 2020 is The Annotated Health Professions Act which he co-authored with Katrina Haymond, Greg Sim and Jason Kully. Jim has been active in the management of Field Law serving as the firm’s managing partner for eight years before returning to full-time legal practice in 2016.
Jim has contributed to his community by serving on the board of directors of a wide range of not-for-profit organizations. Currently Jim serves on the board of the Citadel Theatre and is chair of the Governance Committee.

***Note – attendance at this session counts as credit for your annual verifiable ethics requirement.

The History of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) in
Saskatchewan… Does it have a Future?

Erik H. Nickel, M.Sc., P.Geo.

Abstract: Starting in the late 1990s with a project near Weyburn, CCS in Canada was born. The combination of some visionary policy makers, a willing resource company and a newly minted research centre in the province gave us the opportunity to be the first.

Weyburn was a unique project in that it brought together many different groups, quarterbacked by the Petroleum Technology Research Centre (PTRC).
After a large multidisciplinary study, the conclusion was that CO2 injected at Weyburn for enhanced oil recovery would remain stored permanently.

The experience gained through Weyburn, led the PTRC to the Aquistore project.
Located near the SaskPower Boundary Dam CCS capture plant, Aquistore was to prove the viability of CO2 storage in a deep saline reservoir.

Presently, the governments of Saskatchewan and Canada are the ones to decide if CCS has a future in the mix of greenhouse gas mitigation strategies we employ. With new projects underway throughout the world and an intergovernmental panel on climate change report that insists CCS is necessary to meet emissions targets, the path forward becomes clearer.

Climate Services Training

Dr. Dave Sauchyn, P.Geo.

Abstract: Municipalities, government agencies and private and crown corporations are now engaged in climate risk assessment and adaptation planning. The federal government and most provinces require that engineering design be viewed through a climate change lens.

This has created a demand for a common understanding among practitioners of the science of climate change, risk and impact assessment, adaptation principles and best practices.

Relatively few professional engineers, planners and policy makers have post-secondary education related to climate change.

As a university-based research centre and a founding partner of the prairie hub in the Canadian Centre for Climate Services, Prairie Adaptation Research Centre is strategically situated to provide professionals with training in climate change science and its application to adaption policy and planning and engineering design.

This presentation provides an overview of the status of climate services training in Canada and the level of knowledge required to make the best use of climate data.

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Overview and Update on APEGS Governance Change Project and Bylaw Changes

Members of the APEGS Governance Change Steering Group

Abstract: This session will provide members with an overview of the recommendations that Council has approved as part of the Governance Change project and will focus on those that require Bylaw changes to be implemented. Members will be asked to vote on the Bylaw changes at the annual meeting of members on May 1, 2021.

Geoethics in Reporting for Resource Companies

John G. Pearson, M.Sc., P.Geo., FGC, FEC (Hon)

Abstract: Professional geoscientists and engineers are coming under increasing scrutiny for ethical behavior. For geoscientists, this scrutiny began with the 1993 Bre-X scandal and includes subsequent cases of fraud, negligence and shoddy reporting by professional geoscientists.

In Canada, regulators implemented NI43101 reporting standards and the identification that all reports, news releases and associated reporting for mining projects be vetted by a qualified person (QP) – a professional geoscientist or engineer.

The regulators have developed three steps to address geoethics relating to our obligations as professionals.

First, Geoscientists Canada developed a short course targeting students in their final years of geoscience study to make them aware of and provide resource material with respect to their obligations as professional geoscientists.

In Saskatchewan, the second step is the APEGS Law and Ethics seminar and exam which all Geoscientists-in-Training and Engineers-in-Training must take and pass to become a professional geoscientist or engineer.

Finally, APEGS has instituted an annual, on-line ethics exam that all professional geoscientists and engineers must complete to maintain their license to practice. These steps are in addition to our obligations as professionals to undertake verifiable continuous professional development activity.

It is not possible to legislate ethical behaviour reporting, so it is incumbent on each of us as professional geoscientists to maintain ethical standards in practice and reporting for both ourselves and our colleagues.

***Note – attendance at this session counts as credit for your annual verifiable ethics requirement.

Indigenous Consultation and the Public Interest for Engineers and Geoscientists

Benjamin Ralston

Abstract: According to the Supreme Court of Canada, the Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate Indigenous peoples gives rise to a special public interest that may supersede other public interest concerns.

As the public interest guides both the practice and regulation of professional engineering and geoscience, the role of Indigenous consultation and accommodation in fulfilling this mandate warrants serious attention.
This session will introduce the Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate Indigenous peoples with a particular focus on its intersections with the varied roles fulfilled by professional engineers and geoscientists.
It will outline the complex implications of this constitutional imperative for environment regulation and resource management in Saskatchewan.

The session will also canvass how this duty incentivizes negotiated agreements between Indigenous rights holders and project proponents with important implications for the ongoing operation of particular projects, including hiring, procurement and environmental monitoring.

Plenary Session – 21st Century Water Security as Viewed from Space

Jay Famiglietti – Professor, NASA Senior Water Scientist and Global Water Crisis Specialist

Arguably the most palpable impacts of global change are to water and water availability, including changing patterns of rain and snowfall, increasingly extreme flooding and drought, critical implications for groundwater depletion and more. In this lecture, Prof. Famiglietti draws on his deep expertise as a pioneering researcher in the field of satellite hydrology to deliver a compelling presentation that has been captivating audiences for the past several years.

Professor Jay Famiglietti is IS0 Research Chair? in Hydrology and Remote Sensing and Director of the Global Institute for Water Security at the University of Saskatchewan. He is also the executive director of the University of Saskatchewan Global Institute for Water Security and a Professor in the School of Environment and Sustainability and in the Department of Geography and Planning.

Production of Clean Energy: What Can Engineers Do?

Raphael Idem, PhD, P.Eng. – Clean Energy Technologies Research Institute
Faculty of Engineering & Applied Science – University of Regina

Abstract: Energy is required for industrialization and maintaining/improving our standard of living. At the moment, the majority of the energy is sourced from fossil fuels. This leads to the generation of GHGs, especially CO2, which is blamed for global warming and climate change.
Many useful strategies have been conceived to mitigate this issue. None is a silver bullet. Therefore, one policy fits all type solution may not work.
What is needed is to select and mix strategies depending on the natural resources of each jurisdiction. The challenge lies in finding the most effective mixing formula for the least cost per jurisdiction such that the targets on environment, economy and society’s living standard are met.
These are tasks engineers perform, which may involve research, development, design, construction, operation, etc.

This presentation will discuss the strategies and the varied roles engineers can play based on their best strengths to achieve cost-effective solutions that meet the targets.

Thursday, April 29, 2021

RNA Testing in Wastewater for COVID-19

University of Saskatchewan

Abstract: Details to follow at www.apegs.ca

Small Modular Reactor

NB Power / SaskPower

Abstract: Details to follow at www.apegs.ca

Critical Materials for Green Energy: Global to Local Geological Constraints

Kevin Ansdell, Ph.D., P.Geo., FGC, FEC (Hon)

Abstract: Jurisdictions, companies and individuals around the world are targeting significant increases in the use of renewable energy and electric vehicles to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Wind turbines, solar panels and batteries require a variety of materials, such as cobalt, lithium, rare earth elements, platinum group elements, manganese, graphite, indium and gallium in their production.

These are often called critical materials because their supply is often dependent on non-geological factors and are difficult to replace or recycle.
This presentation will provide an overview of the present and predicted requirements for these materials, their distribution from a global and local perspective with a focus on geological relationships and potential implications for the environment and the economy.

The Success-Energy Equation: How to Regain Focus, Recharge Your Life and Really Get Sh!t Done

Michelle Cederberg – Speaker, Coach, Consultant

Abstract – In an age of disengagement, distraction and fatigue exacerbated by the ongoing pandemic, how we work and live has been tested. We’re busy, stretched and stressed and as we navigate the constant change and uncertainty of it all, it can feel difficult to stay focused and do our best work.

In this thought-provoking session, health and productivity expert Michelle Cederberg shares research from her new book The Success-Energy Equation that will help you regain focus, recharge your life and really get sh!t done, even during these challenging times.

By using the wisdom of science and your own innate common sense, you can combat what Cederberg calls 21st-and-a-quarter-century stress and tap into a well of energy that will reduce the stress in every area of your life.
In this high-energy keynote you will:

  • Get clear on your own definition of success; what really matters to you in work and life and what drives you to do what you do – even as we ride out COVID-19.
  • Look at typical barriers that get in the way of success and how you can effectively navigate them.
  • Discover four science-backed variables that contribute to higher levels of goal success and overall well-being and how to make them work for you.
  • Embrace a simple but powerful habit you must do daily to ensure ongoing success with everything you do that’s important to you.

Full of hilarious stories, anecdotes and innovative strategies, you’ll leave this session with a renewed sense that it’s possible to break free from stress and drive your own success through the pandemic and beyond. That’s Success-Energy, and it’s a formula worth calculating.

COVID-19 Ventilators

RMD Engineering

Abstract: Details to follow at www.apegs.ca

Communication as Ethical Action

Jeanie Wills and Deb Rolfes

Abstract: Being an ethical professional means doing the right thing; however, much of our doing originates in communicating.

This presentation explores how communication both builds our ethical character and helps us demonstrate that character in our personal and professional relationships.

***Note – attendance at this session counts as credit for your annual verifiable ethics requirement.

Saturday, May 1, 2021

APEGS 91st Annual Meeting

9:00 am

The Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act and Bylaws require that the annual meeting of the Association be held in the first six months of the year at a place in Saskatchewan determined by Council. The 91st annual meeting will be held online and will be called to order at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 1, 2021.

Registration

All members will be required to pre-register to obtain a secure access code to attend the meeting and to be able to vote. The deadline to register is 11:59 p.m. on April 16, 2021. Information on registration will be included in the formal Notice of Annual Meeting, which will be sent to all members in April. To register, go to apegs.ca

The agenda for the meeting includes:

  • Minutes from the 2020 Annual Meeting.
  • Business arising out of the minutes.
  • Reports from boards and committees.
  • Audited financial reports.
  • Bylaw amendments.
  • New business.
  • Report of the scrutineers.

Bylaw Amendments

Council has approved a variety of amendments to the Regulatory Bylaws and the Administrative Bylaws which are to be “confirmed, varied or revoked” by the membership in attendance at the next Annual Meeting of the members of the Association. The details of the changes will be included in the official Notice of the Annual Meeting to be sent to all APEGS members in April as is required by The Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act.

Areas covered in the bylaw amendments are:

  • Annual Meeting of members and special meetings of members timing and format.
  • Housekeeping.
  • Engineering / Geoscience Licensee qualifications.
  • Council composition.
  • Council nomination and election processes.

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