Five UNBC Environmental Engineering students reached the podium at a global engineering conference.

Allison Matfin, Maureen Long, Clayton McBride, Brenden Vissers and Stephanie Wall finished third at the Water Environment Federation’s Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC) in Chicago.

The team qualified for the international WEFTEC competition by placing first in a provincial contest earlier this year.

In the BC Water and Waste Association Student Design Competition in April, the students were tasked with the challenge of designing a system to break down sewage sludge and produce biogas to generate heat and electricity at the City of Kelowna’s wastewater treatment plant.

At the WEFTEC event, the team submitted the same proposal and defended their project in a presentation in front of a panel of judges.

The team placed third in a field of 10 entries in the Wastewater Design competition.