This year our North West Pool Managers Seminar was held in Broome on Friday 21 May.  It was a fantastic for the Northwesters to catch up with fellow aquatic managers.  There was an excellent response with over 40 delegates from all over the Pilbara, Kimberley and from as far away as Geraldton.

The Seminar was officially opened by the Shire President of Broome, Cr Graham Campbell.  After welcoming delegates to Broome he mentioned to all of those working in recreation and leisure to prepare for a busy and exciting time with the predicted growth in the North West over the next few years.

The delegates were then straight into a workshop with the three discussions being run simultaneously with each group swapping after 15 minutes.  The topics include;

• how to maintain healthy filters
• maintenance and servicing of pumps
• chemical storage and handling

A great deal of thanks to Greg Jones from Chadson Engineering and Ed Mordaski from Sigma Chemicals for preparing and delivering their presentations to the delegates at this years seminar.

Geordie Thompson from Department of Sport and Recreation asked all the delegates to look out side the box for opportunities in his presentation to the delegates.  He suggests there are some great options for the managers to look at ways of taping into other leisure industries and activities.  The DSR provide great support to LIWA Aquatics and I would like to thank Geordie and Steve for their attendance and contribution to this years Seminar.

Geordie Thompson

After morning tea Karin Kelly ran through the new Facility Operations Manual and demonstrated the ease of updating each facilities operations manual to comply with the new code.  All Group One Facilities should now have a copy of the manual and if your facility has not received your copy please contact Tony Head This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Karin also presented results from the Water Corporation Trial 1, this trial entailed 11 facilities from all over the state from NW, Goldfields, Southern Coastal and metro areas.

Trial 1- what we did and why

• 11 sites
• 1 week duration
• Data logger on the main meter

To identify:

• Incidence of leaks
• Water use trends
• Average water use
• Variation between sites
• Irrigation trends

Key lessons

• Huge variation in water use between pools sites
• Leaks are very common in aquatic centres
• Leaks can account for 50% of consumption
• Setting irrigation too frequently can cost you a lot- Who is in charge of watering your green spaces?
• Measuring and monitoring water use saves water & money
• Centre Managers need to see their water bill
• The leaks in this trial today cost $48,719
• The same leaks in 2012/2013 will cost $72,591*
• This profile of water use, leaks & irrigation is being seen in Schools and other business.

Trial Two - Sub-metering

There are seven sites Involved in Trial 2 which includes Albany, Aqua Life, Aqua Jetty, Bold Park Aquatic, Terry Tyzack, Beatty Park and Melville.  The cost is between $5,000- $8,500 per site to sub-meter facilities of with most of these costs being covered by the Water Corporation.

The trial involves;

• Sub-meter main water using areas
• Read weekly for an 8-12 month period
• Water Corporation will collect readings and develop water map of current practice
• Why? To uncover where and how water is used, and where to invest in improvements in the future, this will lead to how do we motivate behaviour change?

Ellen Daniel, Project Officer from Water Initiatives Department of the Water Corporation will be presenting the full results of trial one and how trial two is progressing at the Annual Conference and Trade Display in August.  Delegates were very interested in the results and how they may find out information on their own facility.

Colin Hassel who has been the acting manager at the new Fitzroy Pool since opened it opened in March provided the group with an overview of the new facility.  He provided a combination of stories and photos of the new pool and was full of praise for the community.  The group were also introduced to Trevor & Adele Caporn who will leave Harvey later this year to become the new managers at the Fitzroy Pool next season.  Welcome to the North West and good luck with new position!

The next presentation was from Lauren Nimmo from Royal Life Saving WA who presented a review of Watch Around Water.  Lauren outlined new resources including new poster designs and promotional materials.  The program's success was attributed to the strong commitment of Pool Mangers working together on this important community message. The goal for all Group One Pools in Western Australia to adopt the program is getting closer but still facilities are holding out.  If you are one of those facilities not involved you are letting the rest of the state down, get involved now!

The next session was the one that still has all the delegates talking and special thanks must go to Cr Chris Mitchell and Kimberly Wildlife Careers and Associates.  Chris organised a fantastic experience with Vanessa and her snakes from Bush Wisdom and Survival (0427810085 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )

The session started well but it was when Vanessa opened the snake box the fun really started with several delegates trying to leave the room with some grace.  Photos on the web show them bolting out the door with more speed than grace.  Vanessa provided the perfect mix of factual and hands on ideas in helping us all deal with unwanted guests around our facilities.

Josh and mate

It was hard to follow up after a session like that but I then presented a reality check for all of the delegates with a presentation on "Managing a Critical Incident".  The aim of the presentation was to get delegates thinking about all the tasks and requirements that they need to be prepared for if there is a death or some other type of critical incident at their facility.  Most have not really analysed all the required aspects and I hope this presentation will prompt everyone to review their emergency procedures.

The next session saw a more global look at our industry that provided an update on a range of issues that included; The Code of Practice, the future development of the LIWA Directory, LIWA Aquatics Accreditation and the current training and assessment schedules.  These provided an opportunity for delegates to provide feedback and better understand the direction of LIWA Aquatics .

The "Around the Pools" session gave everyone an opportunity to pass on what's been happening in their facility and explain about some of their issues, programs, problems and projects.  This sharing of the past 12 months of each pools operation is a great way to finish up the day as it highlights both the "ups and downs" of being a Pool Manager in the North West.  Delegates were then thanked for their participation in another excellent seminar and invited to enjoy a dinner which was sponsored by LIWA Aquatics and held at the Divers Tavern.

Delegates at the Seminar

On behalf of LIWA Aquatics I would like to thank all of our sponsors for supporting this event including; the staff at the Broome Recreation and Aquatic Centres, the Department of Sport and Recreation, Royal Life Saving Western Australia, Miracle Recreation, Chadson Engineering, West Coast Shade, Sigma Chemicals, Orica, AVP Commercial Pools and Anti Wave.

The following day many of the Managers completed their RLSS Pool Lifeguard Requalification with John East and I putting them all through a lively session that included a guest appearance by a rubber snake.  Many thanks once again to my partners in crime on the LIWA Aquatics Committee, Karin Kelly, John East, Heather Preston and Travis Doye.  A final special thanks to RLSSWA whose assistance always ensures this event runs smoothly.

RLSS Pool Lifeguard Training

LIWA Aquatics is here to help those in the Aquatics Industry whether in the city or regional centres to achieve a way of "Maintaining the Network".

If you are not a member join now by going to the LIWA Aquatics web site.

Chris Blankley

Vice President LIWA Aquatics

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