Navigating Treatment Plant Residuals Challenges & Solutions for MA Utilities

Eric Kelley is a Principal with Apex Companies with over 20 years experience in water resources engineering including drinking water quality and treatment, stormwater system evaluations, and wastewater system repair and rehabilitation. He has a Master's Degree in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University and two degrees in engineering from Dartmouth College. He is a licensed PE in the state of MA.  He is an active member of several regional water associations including NEWEA, MWWA, and NEWWA, where he co-chairs the water treatment residuals committee.

Elise Tarnauskas is the Process Control Manager for the Springfield Water and Sewer Commission at the West Parish Filters Treatment Plant, located in Westfield, MA. She is the primary operator of the direct filtration plant and oversees plant operations, operator staff, reporting and budgets.  Elise has been with the Commission for over 17 years and has a BS in Environmental Science from Keene State College.  She holds a both T4 full and D4 full MA water operator license.

Phil Gunderson is an Associate Environmental Engineer at Brown and Caldwell and has been in the industry for 7 years. He works on a variety of projects in the Northeast, primarily in site investigation and cleanup. He has worked on a number of dredging and sediment removals projects, including the Springfield Water & Sewer Commission’s West Parish Filters residuals management project.  He has a BS in environmental engineering from Northeastern University and a registered PE in the state of NJ.

Bradley Perron is the Deputy Director for the Salem & Beverly Water Supply Board located at the Arlington Avenue Water Treatment Facility in Beverly, MA. He is responsible for operations, maintenance, and administrative, in addition to planning and capital programs for the Board. Over the last 20 years, he has worked for many North Shore communities, such as the City of Peabody and the Towns of North Andover and Marblehead, focusing on drinking water treatment and distribution, in addition to wastewater and stormwater conveyance and construction. He has a Bachelors of Science in Biology from the University of Maine and a Masters of Science in Accounting from the Merrimack College. Mr. Perron is a Certified Drinking Water Treatment & Distribution Operator in Massachusetts, maintains a Certified State Environmental Laboratory, is a certified Public Procurement Official, and is an active member of MWWA, NEWWA, & AWWA, as chair of the AWWA Underground Service Line Fittings Committee among other committees

Stephen Nunnery has been Water & Sewer Superintendent in the Town of Walpole for 16 years.  His primary duties are managing all the day to day of operations of the Water/Sewer Department.  He holds MA T4 and D4 water operator licenses as well as I2 and M2 MA Wastewater licenses.  He is a MA licensed Cross Connection Surveyor and is MCPPO certified.

Greg Pizer is the Area Sales Manager, East & Northeast Regions at SYNAGRO and has been with SYNAGRO since 2017.  He has held the position of Areas Sales Manager from January 2024 to present. Prior to 2024 he was the Area Sales Representative.  He attended Towson University, and holds a certificate of completion for Operation of Wastewater Treatment Plants, Volume 1 at California State University, Sacramento.