A huge congratulations to Peter Worth for a decade worth of valuable contributions to Ocean Protect. To celebrate his 10 years with Ocean Protect we spoke with him about his experiences over the past decade:
Tell us about your time at Ocean Protect?
“I have had the pleasure of working with some of the best people in our industry and been able to advance in position over the last 10 years. I am so passionate about Ocean Protect that I even became a shareholder, which I am very proud of. I look forward to another 10 years where Ocean Protect continues to be a market leader in stormwater and emerging pollutant solutions, and personally, I’ll continue to grow and learn in this very interesting field in which we work.”
How has Ocean Protect changed over the past 10 years?
“Ocean Protect has grown and changed over the past decade, with a name change that refocused the business, to quality solutions that help minimise the impact of developments on receiving waterways. We have seen new product lines added, such as the Filterra High Flow Bio, JellyFish Filter, OceanSave and the Cascade Separator, which have all been great additions to our suite of treatment products. We continue to research and improve on existing products for the Australian Stormwater industry. The company has also grown from 10-12 staff, when I started, to over 50 staff today. I have also thoroughly enjoyed seeing my fellow employees grow and advance into different roles, as they have progressed in the company.”
How has the stormwater industry changed in the last 10 years and what lies ahead?
“The Stormwater industry has also changed a lot in this time, but in many respects, it has also stayed the same. When I started in the industry it was quite common in Queensland that bio-retention systems would have pre-treatment via Gross Pollutant Traps, but over the years it seems to have fallen by the wayside. We see a lot of projects that only have bio-retention proposed and many of these systems not performing as they should. I believe that the deletion of pre-treatment with Gross Pollutant Traps may be a major factor in this. We have also seen Increased regulation and more Councils having a focus on water quality and adhering to the State Planning Policy requirements which is encouraging. In future, I am hopeful that the industry continues to innovate, which I know we are doing at Ocean Protect, and further focus on appropriate maintenance becomes widespread. Every treatment device regardless of supplier will need maintenance and to put these products in the ground then not enforce the ongoing maintenance is short sighted.”
What do you enjoy most about working at Ocean Protect?
“The people. We have a great team that enjoy a laugh but are nimble enough to change tact when we need. I have many colleagues that think outside the box and make great suggestions when I am looking for assistance. Mike, as our Founder and Director, has always been a calming influence for me when things get tough. Harout, Lachlan and Stephen B, who I have worked closely with for the majority of my time at Ocean Protect, have always given me a friendly ear to run through any issues, solutions or challenges. I would also like to thank our Operation and Design Team for their continued great work and evolution as the company has grown.
The continued development of new products and variations on existing products has always been something that I enjoy. I also love getting tricky projects and being able to work out desirable outcomes for our clients.”
What is your favourite/most important project you have supported in your time at Ocean Protect?
“I would have to say that the project at the old Rocla site (where I used to work prior to joining Ocean Protect) where we were able to propose our JellyFish filter units for our clients.”