The Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 2009 are scheduled to expire in December 2019 after 10 years of operation. New regulations have now been drafted, along with a regulatory impact statement (RIS).
According to A.G. Coombs’ strategic development director Bryon Price, F.AIRAH, the primary area of interest for buildings and facilities relates to the aspects that address Legionella in cooling towers and “warm water” systems.
In cooling tower systems, notification requirements have been added in line with Australian standards. There is also a new offence relating to tampering with or falsifying water samples, and the regulations have been changed to improve clarity and consistency.
Other changes relate to Legionella risks in certain premises (water delivery systems). These include clearly defining the places where the regulations apply to better reflect the risk profile of Legionella, and, as above, a new offence relating to tampering with or falsifying water samples.
The proposed changes will have some impact on cooling tower management and maintenance in Victoria.
“For Legionella specialists there is a lot of interesting information with regard to regulations in other jurisdictions and other aspects of Legionella and cooling regulations in the Appendix,” says Price.
The consultation period finishes on September 30.