Business Information - Cooling Towers

Legislation

Legislation is under the Public Health Act 1991 and Public Health (Microbial Control) Regulation 2000.

Objective

The purpose of the microbial control requirements of the Act is to regulate air handling and water systems of buildings in order to prevent or inhibit the growth in those systems of micro-organisms that are liable to case Legionnaires' Disease and other diseases.

Water Cooling and Warm Water System Register

Council is required to maintain a register of water-cooling and warm-water systems. The owner or occupier of a premises where a water-cooling or warm-water system is installed is required to provide Council with the following particulars and of any alternations:-

1. the type of system;
2. the address of the premises on which the system is installed;
3. the name, and the residential and business addresses, of the owner of the premises is occupied otherwise than by the owner, those particulars in relation to the occupier;
4. the telephone numbers at which, during business hours and after business hours, the persons referred to in paragraph (c) may be contacted

Installation

Air handling systems, hotwater systems, warm-water systems and water-cooling systems must be installed in accordance with AS/NZS 3666.1 1995 except to the extent that the Regulation provides otherwise.

Maintenance - Cooling Water Systems

• Must be maintained in accordance with AS/NZS 3666.2 1995.
• Shall be inspected at least monthly.
• Cleaning is to be carried out when necessary but not more than six (6) month intervals.
• The system may be maintained in accordance with AS/NZS 3666.3 2000, however Council is required to be notified.

Maintenance - Warm-water Systems

To be maintained as per "Requirements for the provision of cold and heated water" published by the Department of Health.

Operating and Maintenance Manuals

Operating and maintenance manuals and maintenance records shall be readily available at the site for inspection by authorised person upon request. For the purpose of maintenance management the maintenance records shall be retained for a minimum period of two years.

Manuals must include at least the following:-

1. Physical details of the plant, equipment and systems.
2. Recommendations on maintenance including water treatment maintenance and management.
3. Recommended cleaning, disinfection and emergency decontamination procedures.
4. Start-up, operating and shut-down procedures.
5. Particulars of the maintenance management program.
6. Date, item of plant, equipment or system and nature of service performed.
7. Details of defects found and rectification procedure undertaken.
8. The name of the person or company performing the service.

Disinfection Process

Water cooling systems must be equipped with a process designed to control microbial growth and that process:-

1. must be in operation at all times, and
2. must be certified by a competent person annually as being an effective process of disinfection, and
3. must be sufficiently effective so that no sample taken from the system subjected to a test in accordance with the relevant Australian Standard has:
   1. a level of legionella of more than 10 colony-forming units per millilitre, or
   2. a heterotrophic plate count of more than 100,000 colony-forming units per millilitre, and
4. must be supplemented by remedial action taken by a competent person after any test where the levels set out in paragraph (c)(i) and (ii) are exceeded.

For the above purposes, a competent person is a reference to a person who is a tertiary qualified chemist, chemical engineer, engineer or microbiologist and who has expertise in the relevant field.

Drainage

Water cooling systems must not be drained to stormwater, you may be liable for a $1,500 'on-the-spot' fine under the provisions of the Protection of the Environment Operations Act, 1997.

Council Inspections

All systems are inspected annually by Council's Environmental Health Officers to check compliance with the requirements of the legislation.

If you require any further information please contact Council's Environment & Health Unit on 9806 5000. A copy of the Public Health Act is at www.austlii.edu.au or Australian Standards at www.standards.org.au/.