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Yours faithfully,

Bruce

  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill
  • Bruce Flegg for Moggill

New pool fence laws on the way

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Tuesday, 24 August 2010 11:02

New pool fencing laws are set to commence operation for summer 2010. 

Stage 1 of the new laws that commenced last summer applied to newly constructed swimming pools. 

Stage 2 set for the upcoming summer applies to existing swimming pools. 

The following dot points detail the major changes pool owners can expect:- 
  • Compliance with new and stricter safety rules (Click here to read Queensland Development Code MP 3.4 ).Owners of existing pools will be given five years to bring their pool up to the current standard;
  • A compliance certificate is required on any swimming pool if the property is sold or a new lease is entered into.  This will be an additional requirement for people selling a property with a pool or renting a property with a pool;
  • Previously exempt pools, such as indoor pools and pools in hotels, motels and caravan parks, will now be required to be compliant;
  • Local councils will no longer be given discretion to ease pool fencing requirements for properties in rural areas or ocean front properties;
  • Local governments will be required by law to conduct a mandatory pool safety inspection if there is a drowning or near drowning or a complaint is received in relation to the pool.  Safety inspectors will be given the power to enter pool owners property;
  • An electronic pool register.  Pool owners will be given six months from the introduction of the new law (expected to be 1 December 2010) to have their pool on the register.  Further advice of this deadline will be posted at www.moggill.net and in a later Moggill Monitor;
  • It is estimated that the average cost for pool owners of meeting compliance would be between $430 and $730;

    • It was previously allowed for one of the four sides of a pool enclosure to be the wall of the house.  Under the new standards as detailed above, this will no longer be allowed.  A pool fence away from the house will be required on all four sides of the pool.

     Note: Queensland has not yet adopted the Western Australian system of mandatory regular inspections of pools. 

    Queensland now has three times as many pools as when pool fencing laws were first introduced in 1991.  Since the introduction of pool fencing laws, drownings have halved.  The factors involved in toddler drownings appear to be:-

    Ø       In around 50% of cases, non-compliant barriers around the pool;

    Ø       Notably in 100% of cases, inattention by supervising adults;

    Ø      Toddler  learn to swim programs do not appear to be offering large scale protection with a  number of recent drownings by toddlers who had had extensive learn to swim training.

    Ø      There are currently 7 or 8 toddler drownings annually in Queensland.