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NSPF sends newswire release about VGB Act deadline and issues to mainstream media today.

Posted by Laurie Batter on December 12, 2008 at 3:38pm in Safety, Standards, and Codes
This release went out over the wires today, plus to all senators and congress.Controversial New Pool & Spa Safety Act Will Create Public Pool ClosuresNationwidePR Newswire -- December 12, 2008Legislation could force 300,000 public pools to shut down December 19COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Dec. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Most of the 300,000public pools and spas in the U.S. are required to close on December 19,2008 according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) if theydo not comply with the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act (theAct). The Act was named honoring Miss Baker, granddaughter of JamesBaker III, former U.S. Secretary of State, who died in 2002 whenentrapped on a drain in a private in-ground spa. "Even though we fullysupport the goal of the Act, forcing public pools and spas to close hasunexpected and undesirable consequence," states Thomas M. Lachocki,Ph.D., and CEO of the National Swimming Pool Foundation(R) (NSPF(R)).Suction entrapment claims about one to two victims per year based onhistoric data from the CPSC. In contrast, drowning claimed the lives of761 children aged 14 and under in 2004 and those numbers may increasesince fewer children will attend swim lessons when pools are closed.The new federal law requires all public pools and spas, including thoseat community parks, YMCAs, apartments, condominiums, and other homeownerassociations, waterparks, hotels, schools, and universities to beequipped with drain covers that are certified to comply with the newASME/ANSI 2007 standard, as well as other safety measures to prevententrapment and evisceration. CPSC, the enforcing agency of the Act, mayimpose enormous financial penalties and seek imprisonment for violators."Swimming pool operators support preventing entrapment," says Dr.Lachocki. NSPF has funded suction entrapment and drowning preventionresearch for decades and trains over 20,000 pool and spa operators eachyear. "Despite good faith efforts, organizations nationwide will notcomply with this law by the deadline for reasons that are outside oftheir control," asserts Lachocki, who outlines the current issues toinclude:-- The Pool & Spa Safety Act budgets $5 million per year for aneducational program requiring CPSC to establish and carry out educationto the public pool service companies, pool facility owners, operators,and others. No such programs exist. As a result, facilities areeither unaware or confused about the requirements of the Act.-- Some compliant covers are only now becoming available.-- Large and unique shaped (unblockable) compliant drain covers will notbe available by the deadline.-- The Act requires existing large, "unblockable" drains to be replacedwith no evidence the change will reduce the risk of entrapment. Inaddition to the drain cover, the area below the cover (the sump) mustsometimes be excavated and replaced in order to be compliant.Confusion over this exists and can increase compliance costs which canreach $200,000 per pool. See discussion below.-- There are conflicts between engineering requirements in the Act andlocal laws already in place to prevent entrapment.-- State laws require local health departments to review and approvechanges to pools before work begins. The Pool & Spa Safety Act is anunfunded mandate for health departments who do not have the capacity toreview changes on all public pools in their jurisdiction prior to thedeadline. Thus, operators must choose to either break a state law bymaking changes before the deadline, or to break a federal law byseeking state approval and missing the federal deadline.-- There are a limited number of qualified engineers, contractors, anddesign professionals available to design and implement changes.-- Design professionals are not willing to certify aquatic facilities ascompliant due to ambiguity in the law and substantial fines and risk ofimprisonment.Controversy and confusion revolves around replacing existing unblockabledrains. The Pool & Spa Safety Act defines unblockable drains as "drainsof any size and shape that a human body can not sufficiently block tocreate a suction entrapment hazard." There is no evidence that anentrapment has ever occurred on an unblockable drain. Yet the Act andCPSC further require unblockable drains (drains larger than 18" x 23")to satisfy a standard that will require tens of thousands of unblockabledrains to be replaced. A facility would have to close the pool, drainit, perform an engineering review, seek and gain local health departmentapproval -- in some cases seek competitive bids -- dig trenches beneaththe pool, replace the sump beneath the drain covers, repair thestructural steel and pool shell, re-plaster the pool, and re-fill andre-start the pool. This process could take a year and cost hundreds ofthousands of dollars, and disrupt or permanently close the pool. OneMassachusetts middle-school reports an estimate of $110,000. That pool,they say, will remain closed due to lack of money. Many professionals donot understand if a drain is "unblockable" and not a risk of entrapment,why it has to be replaced at all.Since many unblockable drains are "field fabricated" by the pool builderand are unique in size and shape, there is not a "manufacturer" who willbuild and have them tested to the 2007 standard required by the Pool &Spa Safety Act and the CPSC. As a result, new compliant "unblockable"drains are not available in the market. "The controversy aroundreplacing 'unblockable drains' is an example where a slight oversightcan jeopardize the intent of the Act," concludes Lachocki.Swim lessons are one of the key tools to prevent drowning.Unfortunately, closing thousands of public pools means fewer childrenwill learn to swim and fewer lifeguards will be trained. Closing poolsalso disrupts those who are refining their swimming skills. "Within theinterscholastic swimming program across the United States, there wereover 264,000 participants in 2007-2008," says Becky Oakes, NationalFederation of State High School Associations Assistant Director. "Thepossible suspension of use of any pools could certainly impact studentsin their school programs." "We need to keep people swimming," statesAdolph Kiefer, the 1936 Olympic gold medalist in backstroke and anaquatics safety advocate.Dozens of leading organizations have communicated with the CPSC torequest a 12 to 18 month delay in implementation. These include theNational Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), the YMCA of the USA,National Swimming Pool Foundation, and many others.A delay in implementation of the Pool & Spa Safety Act would allowactivities that benefit people (swim lessons, aquatic therapy andrehabilitation, lifeguard training, physical exercise, family-togetheractivities) to continue while the local pool and spa facility works toalso reduce the risk of suction entrapment. NRPA, whose 21,000 membersmanage municipal aquatic facilities, also sees the challenge withcomplying and has provided case studies to the CPSC outlining theimpact. "There are a host of external factors that are creatingroadblocks for compliance, including product availability, local waterordinances, availability of installation engineers, and the financialburden, estimated at $1,000 to $15,000 per pool, on many localgovernments at a time when their budgets are already stretched. Manycommunities manage many more than just one public pool, and someagencies operate scores of pools. Additionally, many older pools havefield fabricated drains that are uniquely shaped and would requirespecially designed covers or grates," says Barbara Tulipane, CEO ofNRPA. She adds that, "As a result, many facilities will be forced toshut down. Our member agencies tell us that the potential disruptionswill be nationwide.""An implementation delay makes sense to resolve technical issues and tosolve the entrapment problem -- without creating a drowning problem,reducing public services, and hurting our fragile economy," Lachockireinforces. "This is not a money issue. Everyone agrees we need toprevent entrapment. How we get it done will dictate if lives are savedor lost. Furthermore, if we do it right, we can also help preventpainful job losses of thousands of people and preserve valuable, safeprograms for citizens. It may be a harder path, but it is the rightpath," he concludes.For more information, or to schedule an interview, contact LaurieBatter, BatterUp! Productions at batterup@batterupproductions.com or760-438-9304.Available Topic Expert(s): For information on the listed expert(s), clickappropriate link.Thomas Lachocki, Ph.Dhttps://profnet.prnewswire.com/Subscriber/ExpertProfile.aspx?ei=77270SOURCE National Swimming Pool Foundation-0- 12/12/2008/CONTACT: Laurie Batter, +1-760-438-9304,batterup@batterupproductions.com, for National Swimming Pool Foundation/CO: National Swimming Pool Foundation

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  • Justin Gregoli December 13, 2008 at 9:34am
    Laurie,
    Great newsletter!
    Question? How do we help?
    What is said in the news release makes a great deal of sense and I am wondering how do we get this considered within the government, especially now with them going on the winter break?
    Is there a way I could help, on a personal level?

    Justin
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