Code Council’s PMG Executive Director Peters Honored at World Toilet Summit in China

Jay Peters, Plumbing, Mechanical and Fuel Gas (PMG) Group Executive Director for the International Code Council is one of three 2011 honorees to be inducted in the World Toilet Organization (WTO) Hall of Fame. The recipients are chosen based on their extensive efforts and contributions to solve the global sanitation crisis that claims the lives of thousands of people every day, most of who are children.

Peters was selected particularly in recognition of his and the Code Council’s consistent contributions to the global sanitation movement, especially in pioneering and initiating the official launch of the United Nations International Year of Sanitation in 2008. During that year’s World Toilet Summit & Expo (WTSE), he conducted an education track on Global Sanitation Policies & Standards. The Code Council sponsored the track, in addition to the first-ever ICC USA Pavilion at WTSE, which offered U.S. companies a cost effective way to reach Southeast Asian prospects.

This year’s induction ceremony took place in late-November in Haikou, Hainan, China. The other two honorees are Lin Jiang, Vice Director for the Ecological Society of China and Kenzo Hiroki, Principal of the International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM).

“I am very appreciative of the leadership at the International Code Council,” said Peters. “Their understanding of the issues and support of my efforts from the very beginning allowed me to make an impact on behalf of our Members.”

Although access to toilets is not a major sanitation issue in the United States, led by Peters, the Code Council has collaborated on multiple initiatives with the World Toilet Organization to help solve the global sanitation crisis, including spearheading the first ever U.S.-based World Toilet Summit last year. Industry leaders and businesspeople from around the world participated in the event, which also brought the global sanitation issue to U.S. plumbing engineers, businesses and the media.

While moderating an education track and presenting a report on potty parity at WTSE 2009 in Singapore, Peters and Jack Sim, Founder of the WTO, formed a committee of global sanitation leaders to draft the first ever standard toilet design document. Published this year, ICC G3-2011 Global Guideline for Practical Toilet Design standardizes the design, installation and maintenance of public toilets to reduce construction costs, which should enable more installations around the world.

“We congratulate Jay for receiving the WTO Hall of Fame award and for his numerous accomplishments on behalf of the global sanitation initiative,” said ICC CEO Richard P. Weiland. “His passion and commitment to the issue of global sanitation is an honorable calling within his chosen profession.”

The International Code Council is a member-focused association dedicated to helping the building safety community and construction industry provide safe and sustainable construction through the development of codes and standards used in the design, build and compliance process. Most U.S. communities and many global markets choose the International Codes.