KANE COUNTY WATER ASSOCIATION

Attention KCWA Members!

KANE COUNTY WATER ASSOCIATION

WATER TASTE CONTEST RULES

1. Three independent judges selected by the Executive Committee will judge the contest.

2. Each community will submit at least two quarts of water in a glass jar marked with their community name. Water shall be submitted at room temperature. Water shall be rated based on taste, odor and clarity on a 1 to 10 basis, up to a total of 30 possible points.

3. Competitors shall deliver their sample to the Lincoln Inn by 11:45 am on the date of the contest and shall check in with the Executive Committee. The contest will be judged at noon.

4. Communities shall utilize water from any source or combination of sources as long as it is from the community's water supply source. Samples shall be drawn from any tap within the community.

5. Water shall be chemically treated in the normally accepted manner for the particular community. No additional treatment or chemicals outside the normal process shall be performed on the sample.

6. Entry is open to all communities in Kane County. Entrants need not be members of the Kane County Water Association to enter.

7. A traveling trophy shall be awarded to the winning community and the name of the community shall be engraved on the trophy. A plaque will also be awarded to the community for permanent display.

8. All decisions of the judges will be final.

9. Winners are welcome and encouraged to compete the following year to defend their title.

SCHOLARSHIP RULES

(Deadline is July 1, 2011)

The following rules apply to the administration of the scholarship program for the KaneCounty Water Association.

1. Applications for scholarships will be distributed by the Kane County Water Association Secretary to the membership. The attached form will be utilized for this purpose. Deadlines will be established appropriately by the Selection Committee to allow for adequate time to review and recommend awardees.

2. The Selection Committee shall consist of the two immediate past presidents of theorganization. They will be responsible for reviewing the applications and making arecommendation to the membership for award. Presentation of the recommendedcandidates will be made at the August meeting for action by the membership. A majority vote of those in attendance will be required to award the recommendedscholarships.

3. The amount to be awarded will be $1,000. The organization can vote to award analternate amount based upon available funding and the number of qualifiedapplicants. More than one scholarship may be awarded in any one year. If so, theSelection Committee will make a recommendation as to the amounts for eachcandidate. These shall be approved by a majority of the membership in attendance atthe August meeting.

4. Candidates shall be a senior level (4th year) high school student who intends to enter civil engineering or environmental engineering or any higher level student at anaccredited university whose major course of study encompasses the fields of civil orenvironmental engineering, hydrological or geological engineering or other programswithin the water works field. Candidates may also be members of the Kane CountyWater Association desiring to pursue continuing education opportunities in the waterfield. Books and required materials for the class are eligible for scholarship if theemployer reimburses the tuition costs only.

5. Candidates must reside or be employed within the geographic boundaries of KaneCounty.

6. Candidates who receive monies from other resources are still eligible to apply for thisaward. Financial need is only one of the many criteria to be reviewed in determiningthe best-qualified candidates.

7. All candidates must complete the form in its entirety and return it to the selectioncommittee by the established deadline. All candidates must list a person of referencesuch as an instructor, academic counselor, public works professional or any personother than a family member who is knowledgeable of the applicants interest in thepublic works and/or water field. A brief letter of recommendation is requested, butnot mandatory.

8. Applicants and recipients may reapply yearly for scholarship awards, provided a newapplication is submitted each year and they continue to meet the requirements of theprogram.

9. Award monies will be disbursed prior to the start of the following school term. Immediately following the award notification, a letter will be sent to the college oruniversity informing them of the award. The awarded check will be made payable tothe student and the educational institution. In the case of continuing education, thecheck may be made payable to the member only, with a written receipt or invoice ofthe amount.

10. Members should make all efforts to notify potential candidates of this award. Theyare encouraged to post notices at public locations to publicize the availability of theawards each year. A suitable flier should be distributed by the Selection Committeeto members for posting.

These rules have been adopted by the organization this day and require a majority vote ofthose present at a meeting of the organization to waiver from or amend these rules.

Please send scholarship applications to:

Kelly Borman

550 N. Commons Drive, Suite 116

Aurora, IL 60504

KCWA Scholarship Rules

KCWA Scholarship Application

SAVE THE DATE

KCWA3rd Annual Golf Outing

Royal Fox Country Club (aka Bushwood CC)

4405 Royal & Ancient Dr. St. Charles, IL.

October3, 2011

Tee Time - TBA

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2011 OFFICERS

The KCWA executives board would like to thank all of you who applied for the Treasurers positions for the 2011 year. We are impressed with the enthusiasm and interest from all the great applicants. We look forward to working with all of the applicants next year.

Without further delay, here are our 2011 officers:

Treasurer- Andrew Deitchman

Secretary- Lisa Jordan

Vice President- Chris Lemke

President Kelly Fitzgibbon

Congratulations to the newest officers and thank you once again to all the

applicants!

Genevas water tops in taste again in county contest

By Linda Girardi For The Courier-News Jan 19, 2011 02:05PM

BATAVIA When it comes to drinking water, Geneva has bragging rights.

On Friday, Geneva defended its title in the Kane County Water Associations annual water tasting contest at Lincoln Inn Banquets in Batavia.

We put a lot of work into producing high-quality drinking water, and it is nice to see our efforts come through, said Mike Martens, Supervisor of Water Supply & Treatment for the city of Geneva.

Genevas second consecutive win in the county taste test entitles the municipality to compete again at the state level in March. Aurora was known as a taste test dynasty among those in the industry for having won at the state level in previous years.

While the Kane County Water Association membership is a congenial group that meets regularly, they do take the annual contest seriously.

The other competitors were Aurora, North Aurora, Batavia, Sugar Grove, Elgin and Carpentersville. Representatives from each municipality carried in a sampling of their water, which is nonchalantly brought in canning type jars and not under lock-and-key.

The samples are placed into unidentified beakers of water for the judges to pour a sampling from. The judges rate each sample on a range of 1 to 10, with 10 being the very best. The judges base their decisions on taste, odor and clarity.

This years judges were Kane County Board member Melisa Taylor, chemical engineer John Boll of Carus Corp. of LaSalle, 95.9 The Rivers on-air personality Danielle Tufano and Beacon-News correspondent Linda Girardi.

There is no scientific method for testing you have to rely on your nose and taste buds, said Boll, who lives in Aurora.

Color and clarity can be measured in the laboratory, he said.

Most communities in Kane County get their water from deep and shallow wells, with the exception of Aurora and Elgin that use Fox River water. Each municipality has a different treatment process. Between the cities, they have more than 1,600 miles of water mains underground.

Geneva is the only municipality in Kane County that uses a reverse osmosis treatment method for its water, put into operation in March of 2008.

Its basically a fancy name for pressurized water that is sent through a membrane, Martens said.

Martens said the only thing that comes out of the membrane is pure water. A portion of the filtered water is blended back in with well water, he said.

Engineer Timothy Grimm of Rempe-Sharpe & Associates of Geneva said it is easy for consumers to take for granted all of the work that goes into producing quality drinking water.

These guys every day are in their treatment plants, making sure the quality equipment is working properly, Grimm said.

As for the judging,

I was glad that they asked me to participate because I was very thirsty, Taylor said.

Taylor said she was invited to be a judge without anyone knowing she is on the Water Conservation Task Force.

Water is a big deal to me. Turn the water off and were all in trouble, she said.

KANE COUNTY WATER ASSOCIATION

WATER TASTE CONTEST RULES

1. Three independent judges selected by the Executive Committee will

judge the contest.

2. Each community will submit at least two quarts of water in a glass jar

marked with their community name. Water shall be submitted at room

temperature. Water shall be rated based on taste, odor and clarity on a 1

to 10 basis, up to a total of 30 possible points.

3. Competitors shall deliver their sample to the Lincoln Inn by 11:45 am on

the date of the contest and shall check in with the Executive Committee.

The contest will be judged at noon.

4. Communities shall utilize water from any source or combination of

sources as long as it is from the communitys water supply source.

Samples shall be drawn from any tap within the community.

5. Water shall be chemically treated in the normally accepted manner for

the particular community. No additional treatment or chemicals outside

the normal process shall be performed on the sample.

6. Entry is open to all communities in Kane County. Entrants need not be

members of the Kane County Water Association to enter.

7. A traveling trophy shall be awarded to the winning community and the

name of the community shall be engraved on the trophy. A plaque will

also be awarded to the community for permanent display.

8. All decisions of the judges will be final.

9. Winners are welcome and encouraged to compete the following year to

defend their title.

KCWA 2nd Annual Golf Outing

Royal Fox Country Club (aka Bushwood CC)

4405 Royal & Ancient Dr. St. Charles, IL.

September 27, 2010 - 9:30 Tee Time

Shotgun Start - Best Ball Team Scramble

Royal Fox CC is a prestigious private club that's hosted the Illinois PGA Open five times. But they've never seen anything like this before! For "one day only" Royal Fox becomes Bushwood CC as we host the first ever themed waterworks golf outing. Dress up as your favorite Caddyshack character (we will be) or break out that wonderful loud colorful golf outfit you've been dying to wear. At this outing, "Bad is Beautiful" and just could win you a prize. We'll have prizes, contests, auctions, and lots of fun on a great golf course. Of course, you're more than welcome to wear your normal golf clothes and have a laugh at our expense. Your hosts, Ty "Ralph" Webb and Carl "Jeff" Spackler

For More Information, Sponsor, Register, or Pay Online go to:

www.atslimited.com/golf_kcwa.asp

Kane tap water taste panel picks Geneva's

December 18, 2009

By MIKE DANAHEY mdanahey@scn1.com

Geneva's tap water topped a field of seven samples vying Thursday for the area's best-tasting designation at the Kane County Water Association's December meeting.

It was the first time Geneva has gone home with the annual honor, beating a field that included defending champion Aurora along with the communities of Batavia, Carpentersville, Elgin, North Aurora and Sugar Grove.

Bob Van Gyseghem, Geneva's superintendent of water and wastewater, said the winning entry offered a combination of deep and shallow well water. The village's water plant is about 18 months old, and Van Gyseghem said its water goes through reverse osmosis (RO) membrane filtration before making it into the pipes and out the faucet.

According to Geneva's Web site, "In addition to removing hardness, though, the RO membranes remove a good portion of other dissolved minerals in the water, which can contribute to better-tasting water. This technology is used by many bottled water providers to purify the water before bottling. With our new treatment facility, we will be blending water from the RO system with a small percentage of well water that does not go through the RO system to add minerals back into the water. By doing this, the taste of our water will be similar to that of many bottled waters."

"We get a lot of compliments on how it tastes," Van Gyseghem said.

"Team Geneva" was represented by Plant Supervisor Mike Martens and operators James Childress and Mike Anderson. Thursday's win moves Geneva to a statewide competition in March in Springfield, and that champion heads off to a national competition later next year in Chicago.

Serving as judges were Richard Faltz, president of Fox Valley Winery in Oswego; Tony Szabo, owner of Midwest Mobile Washers of Morrison; Danielle Tufano, evening radio host on 95.9 The River; and this reporter.

The judges agreed that, but for one sample and an occasional hint of chlorine, the entries all were clear and generally pleasant-tasting.

Michael Bourgerie & Jeremy Barkei

State's Water Plant Operators Recognize Peers as "Best" In Their Classes at Annual Event

2009 Operators of the Year hail from Clinton, Jo Daviess and Kane counties

(pdf)

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