qRD Wins Two BC Municipal Safety Association Awards
qathet, B.C. – The qathet Regional District (qRD) has received two 2026 BC Municipal Safety Association/Public Works Association of BC awards recognizing excellence in workplace health and safety. The awards were presented October 6 at the BCMSA/PWABC Conference in Penticton, BC.
qRD Manager of Occupational Health and Safety Melanie Taylor (center) and qRD General Manager of Operational Services Patrick Devereaux (right) accept two awards from BCMSA
qRD received the 2026 Organizational Safety Excellence Award for its continued commitment to reducing workplace injuries and building a strong, proactive safety culture. qRD Resource Recovery Centre staff also received the 2026 Innovative Safety Solution Award for developing and implementing a data-driven indoor air quality management program at the Resource Recovery Centre scale house.
The Organizational Safety Excellence Award recognizes qRD’s strong workplace safety performance. By preventing workplace injuries and supporting employees in safely returning to work following an injury, qRD has earned an excellent WorkSafeBC Experience Rating, resulting in a significant discount on its WorkSafeBC premiums and fees. This means qRD’s commitment to workplace safety not only helps protect employees, but also reduces costs to the organization.
These results reflect qRD’s ongoing commitment to injury prevention, early intervention and effective return-to-work practices, supported by safe work procedures, hazard assessments, employee training, workplace inspections and active participation by the Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee.
qRD achieved its WorkSafeBC Certificate of Recognition (COR) certification in 2024 and has maintained that certification through successful annual maintenance audits in 2025 and 2026. COR is a voluntary certification program that recognizes employers that have implemented effective occupational health and safety management systems that go beyond minimum legal requirements.
“These awards reflect the commitment our employees bring to creating safe and healthy workplaces across the qRD,” said qRD Chief Administrative Officer, Al Radke. “Achieving strong safety results takes sustained effort across the organization, from identifying hazards and preventing injuries to supporting employees when injuries do occur. We’re proud to see that work recognized, and especially pleased that our approach is delivering benefits for both our employees and the organization.”
“These awards show what can be achieved when safety becomes part of how we work every day,” said qRD Manager of Occupational Health and Safety, Melanie Taylor. “It’s about being proactive, identifying hazards early and finding practical ways to prevent injuries.”
The Innovative Safety Solution Award recognizes a project developed by qRD Resource Recovery Centre staff to address indoor air quality concerns in the facility’s scale house. Located between incoming and outgoing vehicle lanes, the scale house can be affected by vehicle exhaust, volatile organic compounds, airborne particulates and other contaminants. Rather than immediately replacing the nearly new HVAC system, staff used real-time air quality monitoring and operational data to better understand how contaminants were entering the building.
Staff collected approximately three weeks of real-time air quality data and compared the results with vehicle activity, customer traffic, staff movements, CCTV footage and scale transaction records. The investigation showed when and how contaminants were entering the workspace and helped staff identify practical engineering controls.
Those controls included a custom transaction-window insert to reduce uncontrolled outside air entering the scale house, along with adjustments to the existing energy recovery ventilation system to create slight positive pressure inside the building. Following the changes, monitoring showed that elevated VOC readings cleared more quickly and the duration of elevated readings was reduced. The solution also avoided the need for a costly HVAC replacement
“Rather than assuming that replacing the HVAC system was the only option, our team took the time to measure the problem and understand exactly how contaminants were entering the building,” said Manager of Environmental Services, Jason Kouwenhoven. “Using real-time data allowed us to test practical solutions, improve conditions for our employees, and make better use of the infrastructure that was already in place.”
The project is continuing. qRD plans to extend the scale house fresh-air intake approximately 25 to 30 feet above ground level to further reduce the potential for nearby vehicle exhaust and other contaminants to enter the building. Continuous monitoring will be used to measure the effectiveness of future improvements and inform future HVAC investment decisions.
Background on the 2026 Organizational Safety Excellence Award:
Through the BCMSA Organizational Safety Excellence Award, the BCMSA recognizes local governments for activities that improve their experience rating, and ultimately reduce injuries, illness, disease, and fatalities. These awards aim to encourage the sharing of forward-thinking ideas which have been implemented to create a safer, healthier work environment, and practices which go beyond what is considered routine in the industry.
qRD’s occupational health and safety program emphasizes prevention, early identification of hazards, employee participation and continuous improvement. In addition to its improved WorkSafeBC Experience Rating, qRD’s injury rate remained below its Classification Unit average throughout the reporting period included in the award submission. In 2025, qRD’s injury rate was 2.3 compared with 4.1 for the Classification Unit.
Background on the 2026 Innovative Safety Solution Award:
The Resource Recovery Centre project combined occupational hygiene principles, operational analysis, real-time monitoring and practical engineering controls. The approach provides a model that can be applied by other municipalities operating transfer stations, public works facilities, fleet operations or other workplaces located near vehicle traffic.
About the BC Municipal Safety Association:
The British Columbia Municipal Safety Association (BCMSA) is an independent, non-profit organization committed to improving worker health and safety in all industries throughout the province. To learn more about the BCMSA, please visit: bcmsa.ca
About the qathet Regional District:
The qathet Regional District serves the rural areas from Lund to sḵelhp (Saltery Bay), the City of Powell River, Texada Island, Savary Island, and Lasqueti Island. The qathet Regional District provides some services, through contract, to Tla’amin Nation. To learn more please visit qathet.ca