A "Gold Star" in the Water Pollution Control Authority

Whether he is at a meeting, a board of finance meeting, or checking on operations at the wastewater facility in town, Edward Alibozek is always willing to stop and talk.

His openness to suggestions and willingness to work with others is one of the many reasons WPCA Chief Operator Alibozek was recently awarded the Operator of the Year Award for Connecticut by the New England Water Environment Association, Inc.

According to the association, the award recognizes an individual who has shown a high level of interest and performance in wastewater operations and who has made significant contributions to the wastewater field.

“I really appreciate the town of East Windsor, they have given me a lot of leeway in implementing ideas and projects and pursuing education,” said Alibozek, who didn’t know he was nominated for the award initially. “It has been a good environment for me.”

He began working in the wastewater field in 1985 in Texas, and then moved with his wife, Donnalee, to Connecticut in 1989. He started at the East Windsor wastewater facility in September 1989. Alibozek was named chief operator in 1995.

He has been very involved in the North Road/Route 140 project and is excited to see it breaking ground later this week.

“This project has been in the planning stages since the 1980’s, when they wanted to open the corridor to development,” he said. “There is a history of septic failures there, and this will link the corridor into the town sewer lines. Some people thought this project would never get off the ground.”

The $3.87 million project, which was approved by referendum, also will include replacement of a failing 40-year-old pump station, construction of 7,740 linear feet of new gravity sewer and 1,000 linear feet of a new force main along the Route 140 corridor. It is 43-percent grant funded with federal money. The project is scheduled to start in the next few days.

“We hope not to impact traffic and deliveries too much,” Alibozek said. “We are always open to opinions and questions from taxpayers.”

Paul Anderson, East Windsor WPCA Chairman, has known Alibozek from more than 10 years.
 “There is a lot of teamwork in this operation,” Anderson said. 

He was supposed to go with Alibozek for the award luncheon in Boston in January, but due to weather and personal issues no one was able to attend.

“Paul Dombrowski, (the Connecticut Director of the NEWEA) was able to attend a WPCA meeting to present the award in March, which was phenomenal,” Anderson said.

“Ed is a gold star in our organization. He is the prime mover and shaker behind the
North Road project, getting other agencies involved and getting the word out. He is well-liked in town,” Anderson said. “He listens to people and is easy to talk to. I don’t know what we’d do without him. He is a great asset.”

Alizobek graduated from Asnuntuck Community College in 2008 with High Honors, finishing up 25 years worth of college credits. In August of 2010, he received a Fundamentals of ArcGIS Learning Pathways Certificate from ESRI in Redlands, Calif., a 95-hour course structure. He is currently attending American Sentinel University, and is six credits away from receiving an Associate Degree in Geographic Information Systems.

He is working on updating and digitizing the GIS mapping system for the town’s sewer systems, which would make the information more accessible to potential developers and taxpayers in town, as well as help the WPCA assess potential problem areas.