Constitution

Name

The association shall be known as the “Irish Water Treatment Association (IWTA)”.

Association Objectives

  1. To promote environmental protection, by the use of appropriate on-site effluent treatment products and designs.
  2. To support its members in implementing best practice and duty of care to their customers.
  3. To follow the member’s code of conduct, customer charter and complaints procedure.
  4. To work towards promotion of increased standards in the industry.
  5. To provide representation and a common voice in meetings with the D.O.E.L.G., the E.P.A., local authorities and other regulators to encourage the installation of performance tested equipment (that meets the local standards).
  6. To foster a spirit of good fellowship amongst its members.
  7. To promote the treatment and satisfactory disposal of domestic wastewater, thus ensuring the entire water cycle is managed efficiently and effectively.
  8. To promote the introduction and enforcement of the appropriate regulations for domestic on-site water and wastewater treatment.
  9. To be Ireland’s leading voice for domestic water conservation, reuse and recycling.
  10. To highlight the importance of water as a precious resource and to promote its conservation, reuse and recycling on the island of Ireland.

Members

  1. Membership is open to architects, engineers, designers, local authorities, installers, academia, government agencies, manufacturers and the general public who collectively have an interest in the aims and objectives of the association.
  2. Members must agree by signature (copy held by the secretary) to adhere to the member’s code of conduct, the customer’s charter and the customer complaints procedure, or any other such documents as may be agreed.
  3. Members shall hold insurance cover for employer’s liability, public liability and product liability.  A copy of their insurance cover must be provided to the Secretary when they apply.  Insurance continuity must be confirmed during the AGM.  (Note – insurance is only applicable for those members who carry out practices or sell product for which insurance will apply).
  4. Membership approval – new full members should apply to the Secretary and gain the acceptance of 2/3rd’s of the existing full membership.
  5. The Secretary shall keep a register of all members.
  6. Each member shall nominate a substitute representative, at least one of which should attend and participate in all IWTA meetings on a regular basis and be represented at every meeting.  Motions carried during a meeting may only be revisited at subsequent meetings at the Chairman’s discretion.
  7. A member shall cease to be a member if:
    • he/she gives the Secretary written notice of resignation of his/her membership
    • the member, having committed some act or having become guilty of some behaviour inconsistent with membership of the association, the association resolves by a majority of two thirds to remove him from membership and to remove reference to IWTA from member company website, literature etc
    • the member or his/her alternative representative does not attend three consecutive meetings without an apology, he/she will cease to be a member of the association and is required to remove reference to IWTA from member company website, literature etc.

Subscriptions

  1. The annual subscription of the association shall be that agreed during the AGM or EGM and shall be payable in advance.
  2. The annual general meeting shall take place in January.  The association shall have the power to vary the subscription by ordinary resolution during this meeting.
  3. Subscriptions are not refundable.
  4. In the event of the association being dissolved, any available funds or debts will be distributed amongst disbanding member companies.
  5. Membership grades and fees are as per the attached fee structure appendix which will be agreed at the AGM for the coming year.

Officers

  1. The honorary officers of the association shall be a Chairman, a Vice Chairman, a Treasurer and a Secretary and must be full members of the association.
  2. An association President may be elected in addition to the above officers and may not be a member of the association.
  3. Any officer may retire by giving one month’s prior notice to the Secretary.  All officers shall retire at the end of each annual general meeting but shall be eligible for re-election at the meeting.

Liabilities

  1. IWTA members will not be held liable for the actions or activities of individual IWTA members, nor will IWTA itself be held liable for any legal action taken against an individual IWTA member.

Meetings

  1. Meetings of the association shall be held not less than once in every three months.
  2. Not less than seven days written or oral notice shall be given by the Secretary to members of the association of every meeting.
  3. Simple majority makes decisions at meetings of the association and in the event of equality of voting, the Chairman (or acting Chairman of that meeting) shall have a casting vote.
  4. The quorum of the association shall be four or other number decided at the annual general meeting.
  5. The Chairman or his representative shall chair all meetings.
  6. The Secretary shall keep minutes of each meeting.  These shall include record of attendance, start and finish times.
  7. The Treasurer must indicate at each meeting the financial situation and advise the meeting should there be any possibility of the association funds becoming negative.

Annual general meetings

An annual general meeting shall be held in January of every year.  The business of the annual general meeting shall be:

  1. to review the Chairman’s report of the activities of the association during the preceding year.
  2. to receive and consider the accounts of the association for the preceding year, Treasurer’s Report on the financial position of the association.
  3. to elect officers.
  4. to fix subscription for the current year.
  5. to consider any proposed amendment to the constitution, code of conduct, customer charter and customer complaints procedure or other such document.  Any such amendment will require a two-thirds majority.

Extraordinary general meetings

  1. An extraordinary general meeting may be convened at any time upon a requisition setting out the resolution or resolutions to be proposed at it.
  2. The business, which may be conducted at any extraordinary general meeting, may be any one or more of:
    • removing any of the members
    • removing all or any of the officers
    • filling vacancies caused by such removal
    • amending the codes
    • amending the subscription
    • dissolving the association

Proceedings at annual and extraordinary general meetings

  1. Not less than twenty one days’ prior notice in writing, setting out the resolutions to be proposed at the meetings, shall be sent to every member.
  2. Resolutions at the annual general meeting shall be passed by simple majority of the votes entitled to be cast by the members present at that meeting.
  3. Resolutions at extraordinary general meetings shall be passed by a majority of two thirds of the votes entitled to be cast by the members present at the meeting.
  4. Each member company shall have one vote on every resolution.

 

Initialled below:

Irish Water Treatment Association

Current officers of the association:

Chairman:               Patrick Buckley

Vice-Chairman:        Dave Best

Treasurer:               John Molloy

Secretary:               Kevin Fitzpatrick