Years of professional experience in this field
Jake Erickson
Wastewater Operator
North Mankato
Summary
- Class D WWTP license (11/1/25-11/1/28). 0.1MGD plant with Lift Station, EQ , RMT , 2x EGSB anaerobic digester, SBR Holding, True Batch SBR, WAS tanks.
- Class E Water operator license (12/15/25-12/31/28). 0.4MGD with private well, well tank, 6x dual media filters, 2x RO with CL-17, permeate tank, 4x carbon tower, polishing filter, UV and CL-17 with spiral chart. Additional RO unit with UV, Ozone generator, Ozone contact tower, final UV - this third unit is only for bottled water production.
- RO Specialist Level 1 Certified (1/2/25-12/31/28)
- Boiler Special Engineer License
- Safety committee
- Ammonia response team
- First aid team member since November 2024
- Environmental spill/discharge response
- Confined space entry operations
- Forklift certification
- Fall protection training
- Aerial platform equipment training
- Arc flash training
- Reliability: Impeccable attendance and reliability, have only missed work for family emergencies and one unlucky flat tire in the past 4 years.
- Team player: I work with all departments listening and understanding how I can use my knowledge and time management skills to be an effective asset wherever I can.
- Resourceful: working on my own, I continuously solve problems to the best of my ability. I conduct my own ongoing education, often researching topics relevant to my specific facility or the industry at large.
- I do my own maintenance - providing my own tools, troubleshooting, preventative maintenance, and corrective maintenance. I pick up work orders and repair requests unrelated to my work areas to assist the team as needed.
Overview
2
2
8
8
Certifications
Work History
Water Treatment and Wastewater Treatment Operator
Wis-Pak
North Mankato, MN
07.2024 - Current
Under little to no supervision, I am responsible for the following:
- Operation of water treatment plant and wastewater pretreatment plant
- Operation of hot water boiler, steam boilers
- Daily collection of samples
- Daily testing of samples
- Calculations such as percent removal, unit conversions, SVI, MCRT, SRT, ratios such as F:M and VFA:ALK, general water and wastewater math, basic math, etc.
- Weekly tests and checks
- Monthly tests and checks
- Daily monitoring of chemical inventory and usage
- Ordering of materials and supplies
- Refilling and replacing materials and supplies as needed, to include using power lifting equipment such as fork lift, electric pallet jack, etc.
- Receiving bulk deliveries of materials
- Hazardous materials handling
- Data entry and reporting using Microsoft suite programs such as Excel and Word
- Preventative maintenance
- Corrective maintenance
- Troubleshooting
- SCADA monitoring
- Facility alarm monitoring
- Treatment process adjustments as needed
- Monthly checks on first aid cabinets, trauma kits, first response cabinet
- General housekeeping, cleaning, sanitation, and upkeep of my areas to include taking out garbage, washing lab equipment, sweeping, dusting, etc.
- Grounds security, maintenance, cleaning to include raking leaves, shoveling snow, salting ice, picking up trash/debris
- Gas monitoring as needed, including calibration and bump testing 4-gas monitor
- Maintaining all PPE
- Coordinating and supervising contractors as needed
- Assisting other departments as needed
- On-Call 24/7
- Emergency response as needed
- Coordinating with local, state, federal agencies and officials as needed
- Facility startup and shutdown as needed
- Effective and clear communication with management and all departments, including other facilities as needed
- Using best judgment while working alone or unsupervised to ensure the safety of myself and others, as well as the plant equipment and the facility, following all company, local, state, and federal policies/guidelines/regulations
- Keeping all permits and certifications valid, up to date, and compliant
- Creating and implementing new policies and procedures as needed
- Training employees as needed
- Monthly HVAC Filter changes
Education
High School Diploma -
Willis High School
Willis, TX05-2008
Skills
- Wastewater Treatment
- Water Treatment
- Reverse Osmosis
- Microsoft Suite
- Laboratory Analysis
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Communication
- Attention to Detail
- Teamwork
- Servant Leadership
Accomplishments
- After a spill of caustic cleaning chemical, I neutralized 80,000 gallons of wastewater from 10.40pH to exactly 7.00pH, using bench titrations with no indicator to calculate total and soluble alkalinity, converting this from hydrochloric acid to citric acid, and making my own citric acid 20% solution from scratch
- Successfully treated 9107 gallons of high-strength product over the course a month with no souring or permit violations
- Created numerous new procedures and checklists to ensure long-term operational stability and reliability
- Obtained boiler and water operator licenses unprompted to better myself and the company
Certification
- Wastewater Operator Class D, MPCA
- Water Supply System Operator Class E, MDH
- Reverse Osmosis Specialist 1, DHP
- Boiler Special Engineer, DLI
- Firefighter 1, NFPA
- Firefighter 2, NFPA
- HAZMAT Operations, NFPA
- ICS 100, 200, 700
- CPR/AED, Red Cross
- CPR/AED First AID. American Heart Association