Presidential Team

Professor Margaret Bates - President

Margaret has worked her way from lecturer to Professor at the University of Northampton and is presently the Chair of the Institution's Scientific & Technical Committee.

Over many years as a lecturer, researcher and presenter at conferences she has developed an expertise in landfill, energy from waste, resource efficiency and more recently WEEE.

Among her achievements, Margaret has advised two African governments (Kenya and Nigeria) on the development of policy relating to wastes management and has delivered training on developing effective policy and regulation for several more (through the United Nations University).

Her work has featured on BBC Panorama, in the Guardian newspaper, Radio 4 You and Yours, Radio 4 World at One, The Sun, News of the World, Mail, Mail on Sunday as well as on local radio, television and newspapers.

Professor David C Wilson MBE - Senior Vice President

David has a first degree in Chemistry from Oxford; followed by a doctorate sponsored by the old Harwell Laboratory (Atomic Energy Research Establishment).

He then joined the commercial consultancy arm of Harwell, inter alia running a hazardous waste research unit for the Department of the Environment (DOE). After 5 years, he won a contract in Hong Kong for 18 months to develop a computerised decision support system which the government used to plan their modern municipal solid waste facilities. Shortly after returning to England, David joined Environmental Resources Limited (ERL) now ERM. He led ERM's international waste management practice for 20 years.

For the last 10 years, David has worked as an independent consultant. Advising Defra until March 2013 on their Waste and Resources Evidence Programme. David has authored many high profile international reports.

Since 2000, David has been a Visiting Professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Imperial College London. He is a Chartered Chemist, a Chartered Waste Manager.

He was recruited in 1984 as a founding member of ISWA's first Working Group, on Hazardous Wastes (WGHW), and also of the Editorial Board for ISWA's peer-reviewed journal Waste Management & Research; and continues to serve on both.

At CIWM he is the Chair of the Hazardous Waste SIG and is Vice Chair to Scientific and Technical Committee.

Enda Kiernan - Junior Vice President

Enda is a Civil Engineering graduate from the University of Ulster, Jordanstown, a Chartered Waste Manager, becoming a Fellow of the Institution in January 2011. He is the current chair of the Rep of Ireland Centre. He is also a General Councillor and a Trustee of CIWM and was a Non-Executive Director of CIWM Enterprises from 2012 – 2015.

Enda has worked in the Local Authority service since 1997, specialising in Waste Management and in Waste Operations in particular. His experience includes waste licence applications for landfill facilities, waste licence implementation on landfill and civic amenity facilities, environmental management systems, project management of the design, construction and operation of civic amenity facilities, landfill. He has been involved in preparation of tender documentation and tender evaluation of waste related infrastructure. Other areas of expertise relate to the permitting of waste facilities, waste enforcement, street cleansing and infrastructure development, CA Site Construction Programme and implementation of the WEEE Directive in Ireland. He was Project Manager for the introduction of Pay By Weight and the Kerbside collection of Dry Recyclables in South Cork. This involved the distribution of 80000-wheeled bins, the purchase of new collection vehicles, public communications and the upgrading of existing bin lifter stock.

He has previously advised LARAC, WRAP, DEFRA & CIWM in consultations in connection on Pay As You Throw charging systems. He was involved in an operational sub - committee established by the Irish Dept. of the Environment in 2004 on the implementation of the WEEE Directive and again in 2015/2016 on the implementation of Pay By Weight.

Elected as Junior Vice President of the Institution in 2016, he is currently the Head of Waste Enforcement at Cork County Council.

Professor Jim Baird - Immediate Past President

Jim has been involved in the waste industry for over 15 years and started his career as a civil engineer, graduating with honours from Glasgow University. Jim then undertook his PhD, again at Glasgow University, in river hydraulics studying the behaviour of open channel flow in the context of flooding and flood plain hydraulics.

Jim's first professional role in 1984 was as a fluid mechanics engineer at the British Hydromechanics Research Association. He gained corporate membership of the Institute of Civil Engineers in 1986. In 1994 Jim was appointed to the Scottish and Newcastle Chair of the Environment and Society at Glasgow Caledonian University.

Jim is currently a professor at Glasgow Caledonian University and continues to undertake and publish in the area of waste and resource management, and as module leader in waste management modules at postgraduate level, continues to support the development of graduates looking for a career in waste management. Jim was elected to General Councillor in 2003 and is now a fellow of CIWM.

Jim has had an active role in CIWM's Scottish Centre where he has been Honorary Secretary for six years and now acts as Honorary Treasurer for the Scottish Centre Council. Jim has also acted as the Scottish representative on the CIWM Scientific & Technical Committee and sat on the CIWM Environmental Body and the Fellows Assessment Panel.

Jim is a Director of an environmental reporting company and in the Summer of 2012 won an Enviroapp competition run by the Scottish Government's Independent 2020 Climate Group.

Key matters for Jim in the future will be the further development of training of employees in the waste and resource management sector, as well as to further strengthen CIWM's international relationships.