Qualified Operator Qualifications and Certification

AQUATIC VENUE operation and maintenance violations are common. POOL inspection data from 15 jurisdictions across the United States indicate that over half (61.1%) of inspections identified one or more violation(s) and 12.1% of inspections resulted in immediate closure because of the seriousness of identified violation(s). In addition, violations regarding the following issues were frequently identified: * Disinfectant level (10.7% of inspections), * pH level (8.9%), * Other water chemistry (12.5%), * Filtration/RECIRCULATION SYSTEM (35.9%), * Water test kit (3.3%), * Record keeping (10.9%), and * Licensure (2.7%)⁴³¹. Review of SPA inspection reports from these same jurisdictions found over half (56%) of inspections identified one or more violation(s) and 11% of inspections resulted in immediate closure because of the seriousness of identified violation(s). In addition, SPA inspection data indicated that the following violations regarding the following issues are frequently identified: * Disinfectant residual (17% of inspections), * pH level (15%), * Other water chemistry (17%), * Filtration/RECIRCULATION SYSTEM (27%), * Water test kit (2%), and * Record keeping (13%)⁴³². The authors conclude that the number of overall violations highlights the need for POOL and SPA staff training, which includes information about recreational water illness (RWI) transmission, and the potential benefits of mandating training for POOL operators throughout the United States. In addition, it underscores the need for operator training courses to include the topic areas related to the common violations listed above. The PATHOGENS causing approximately one-third of reported RWI outbreaks associated with treated facilities are CHLORINE sensitive. This CHLORINE sensitivity of PATHOGENS involved in outbreaks indicates that these AQUATIC FACILITIES were poorly operated or maintained. The authors conclude that preventing recreational water illness outbreaks, particularly those associated with inadequate public operation of AQUATIC FACILITIES, calls for required AQUATIC FACILITY operator training⁴³³. Of 36 reported POOL chemical–associated health events in New York State (1983–2006), 69% (25) were caused by poor chemical handling or STORAGE practices and 81% (27) resulted from mixing incompatible chemicals. The authors conclude that preventing these events calls for educating public pool operators and residential pool owners about safe chemical handling and STORAGE practices⁴³⁴. Operator Training Reduces Pool Inspection Violations Studies have shown that POOLS with operators who have successfully completed formal training in POOL operation, have better water quality than POOLS without a trained operator. Results from a study in Nebraska demonstrated that FREE CHLORINE violations and concurrent pH and FREE CHLORINE violations were twice as likely in local jurisdictions not requiring certification compared with jurisdictions requiring training. The authors conclude that these results demonstrate the benefit of requiring POOL operator certification to help prevent recreational water illnesses⁴³⁵.