The National Swimming Pool Foundation and Aquatics International magazine are each hosting safety events - one live and one virtual - for facility managers this fall.
On Oct. 6 at the World Aquatic Health Conference in Colorado Springs, Colo., NSPF (in conjunction with the Consumer Product Safety Commission) will present the first of three planned National Pool and Spa Safety Events to help bring operators of public pools and spas into compliance with the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act. The act required all 300,000 public pools and spas in the United States to ensure that their drain covers and suction systems would adequately prevent a pool user from being entrapped or eviscerated by December 2008. But NSPF officials say that as many as 50 percent still may not be in compliance.
The free three-hour event will consist of training, educational materials, demonstrations and an expert from CPSC to answer questions. Public health inspectors working in the field, state and local health officials, regulators, pool and spa operators, and aquatic facility managers are encouraged to attend. The session also will be videotaped and posted on the NSPF and CPSC websites. Two additional events are planned for 2011, with dates and locations pending. For more information or to register, click here.
Meanwhile, a virtual conference sponsored by Aquatics International beginning Nov. 9 will address the Centers for Disease Control's Model Aquatic Health Code and its potential impact on the aquatics industry. The MAHC, developed by the CDC through an initial grant from NSPF, was created to assist local and state agencies with updating or implementing standards for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of swimming pools and other treated recreational water venues.
"The Model Aquatic Health Code: Cracking the Code" will feature seven free and exclusive on-demand webinars available through May 9, 2011. "Nearly 80 percent of aquatics professionals are either afraid the MAHC will be another VGB debacle or don't know enough about it, according to our online poll," says Aquatics International editor Gary Thill. "We hope this series of seminars will provide the education professionals need so they don't get blindsided by these important new guidelines." Seminars will be provided by aquatic design and architectural experts, researchers and industry veterans, and session topics include liability concerns, code confusion, the MAHC's relationship to water chemistry and its impact on risk management. For more information or to register, click here.
