User:MEWarren/Albert E. Berry, O.C., P.Eng

Dr. Albert Edward Berry was born in _____, one of nine children, who grew up on a farm in St. Mary’s Ontario.[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Marys,_Ontario] He received degrees from the University of Toronto, including his PhD. in ______.

He is credited with saving the lives of thousands of children through his research on the transmission of bovine tuberculosis to humans, resulting in compulsory milk pasteurization in Ontario in 1938, which was subsequently adopted in other jurisdictions. Berry also had a diverse and innovative career in the public service. He was appointed director of the Department of Health’s Division of Sanitary Engineering in 1926, and was instrumental in the formation of the Canadian Institute on Sewage and Sanitation in 1933. In 1956, Berry became the first general manager and chief engineer of the Ontario Water Resources Commission (OWRC), wherein Berry “build the OWRC into one of the most effective environmental government bodies in the world, setting a firm foundation for the subsequent Ontario Ministry of the Environment”. Dr. Berry’s environmental leadership was also recognized and utilized at the international level. He was president of American Water Works Association and the Water Environment Foundation, the sole individual to be elected president of both these organizations. Upon retirement in 1963, Berry became a consultant for the World Health Organization. Berry “worked tirelessly translating scientific epidemiology into legislative realities”. In addition to numerous awards from professional organizations, in 1973 he received the Order of Canada, the highest civilian honour Canada can award, for his contributions to environmental engineering. The award recognized “ his contributions to public health and conservation and for his engineering skills in the development of water services in Canada and abroad.” In a personal letter to Dr. Berry upon his retirement, A. M. Snider, chairman of OWRC wrote “You have given indeed a lifetime of dedicated service to the cause of good water and to the control of pollution in this great province. Truly it can be said that you are an outstanding authority on these matters in North America”. Doctor Berry died October 19 1984.

Sources: Davey, Tom. “Was President Eisenhower the godfather of the Ontario Ministry of Environment.” Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine March 2002. “Pioneer environmentalist honoured at St. Marys, Ontario.” Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine July 2005. Rose, Phyllis and Howard Rosen, eds. An Interview with Dr. Albert E. Berry. Illinois: Public Works Historical Society, 1988.