Aquatics Guide - 2021 - 6

wide adoption. The ISPSC provides
minimum requirements for the design,
construction, alteration and repair of
residential and commercial pools, spas,
hot tubs and aquatic facilities. Overlap
exists between the MAHC and the
ISPSC in the commercial design and
construction space. As for the biggest
difference between the two codes:
the MAHC provides comprehensive
guidance on all aspects of commercial
aquatic venues, while the ISPSC currently focuses on construction.
The efforts to update the ISPSC are
spearheaded by the Pool and Hot Tub
Alliance. Harmonizing relevant aspects of the two codes provides more
clarity for those who build pools.
Changes were identified for the fourth
edition of the MAHC, as well as for
the 2021 update of the ISPSC.
One of the most interesting changes requested requires the inclusion of
steps and handrails for sunshelves, as
well as three feet maximum depth adjacent to the sunshelf. These changes
will only be effective for new construction or in cases where a pool undergoes substantial renovations.

Emerging Novel
Aquatic Venues
The aquatics industry is an everchanging beast. Every year, new products or concepts are introduced. While
not new, surf venues and artificial
swimming lagoons are receiving increased attention as more of these very
specialized venues are being constructed. Although they are very large and
share similar concepts with traditional
pools, these specialized venues are radically different. Change requests were
submitted that would have included
these venues in the fourth edition of the
MAHC. However, when it came time
for CMAHC's technical support committee and technical review committee
to evaluate these change requests, ad6

Parks & Recreation

ditional questions were raised about
these venues. The questions resulted
in an inability to refine the change requests and a recommendation against
adopting them at this time.
CMAHC and CDC will spearhead
efforts to develop guidance for these
unique venues that can be used by
pool inspectors and operators, which
will result in more change requests
for the next cycle of MAHC changes.
CDC guidance is slated for release by
Memorial Day 2021.

Ventilation Systems for
Indoor Aquatic Venues
The sometimes-stagnant air and
oftentimes pungent aroma of chloramines at indoor aquatic venues have
spurred discussion at swim meets,
swim lessons and many aquatic conferences. Several change requests were
submitted via the CMAHC Indoor
Air Quality ad hoc committee. These
changes include:
* Limiting air velocities to 30 feet
per minute
* Updating code references to the
latest version of the American
Society of Heating, Refrigerating
and Air-Conditioning Engineers
* Updating air handling requirements for venues with stadium
seating to improve air quality with
an increased focus on moving air
across the surface of the water
* Research continues to validate
that the most concerning air quality tends to be at the water's surface. By moving more air across
the surface and using methods to
capture it, a significant amount
of disinfection byproducts can be
eliminated. This leads to benefits
to the user's experience and health
as well as equipment life.

Interactive Spray Features
A CMAHC ad hoc committee on

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interactive spray features provided
several change requests, the most
significant regarding the use of ultraviolet (UV) light as a secondary disinfectant system. It is no great secret
that the specific usage and dynamics
of an interactive spray feature places
users, overwhelmingly children, at a
higher risk of fecal-based recreational
water illnesses. Of specific concern in
these type of venues is Cryptosporidium. The benefits of using UV light to
lower the risk of Cryptosporidium are
well known. Among these requested
changes is a requirement that all interactive spray features be fitted with a
UV light system designed to treat 100
percent of the recirculated water. This
would not apply for pass-through systems where potable water is used,
then drained into the sewer system.

Check Your Drain Covers!
While not an update to the MAHC
specifically, I would be remiss in not
reminding the community to check
your drain covers. In 2008, the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety
Act (VGBA) was passed by Congress.
It goes without saying that this law
had ripple effects throughout the entire aquatics industry. Manufacturers
worked to meet the new requirements
and create the supplies, so that facilities could meet the implementation
deadline. Designers and builders
had to swiftly change practices to ensure compliance for pools in varying
phases of construction. Service companies had to scramble to make sure
their commercial accounts were going
to be compliant. And many aquatic
venues incurred great expense to retrofit their venues to achieve compliance, especially those that were from
older construction with unusual drain
configurations.
Flash forward to 2021, and VGBA
is now slightly more than 11 years

Aquatics Guide - 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Aquatics Guide - 2021