are water utilities inheriting risk from local consultants?

Randy Holland

EnviroDesign Management

Presented by

Are Water Utilities Inheriting Professional Risk From Local

Consultants?

http://www.safe-t-cover.com/

http://www.safe-t-cover.com/

Utilities: Are you Inheriting Risk from Local Consultants?

IntroductionThe water engineering community has been struggling with newprofessional liability risk involving the location of premise isolation backflowpreventer systems; Not because of new design practices, but because ofnew information about the old practices. There has been a slow trickle ofwarnings for years, but in the past 3 years important organizations andindustry leaders have added new warnings with much stronger languagethat not only change recognized best practices, but actually challenge thefitness and safety of older placement methods altogether.

https://www.awwa.org/

https://www.awwa.org/

http://fccchr.usc.edu/

http://fccchr.usc.edu/

https://www.aspe.org/

https://www.aspe.org/


IntroductionAnd with this new risk realization comes a new interested party: Theinsurance company. Because of this very public commentary from expertsand leading groups, casualty carriers, through subrogation, have newweapons for damage recovery. And anytime the accused designer is able todemonstrate that local government contributed, whether materially orpassively, to the poor design, the water district and/or building authoritymay be at risk for the liability.

1. What are the risks associated with backflow preventer

installation?

2. Can that affect water jurisdictions?

3. National survey of civil and plumbing engineers

4. Standard details, best practices, and how to get your

district up to date

Today We’ll Cover:


Backflow Installation Risks

We’ve all seen the extraordinary measures OSHA imposes to legally access vaults for maintenance tasks. fresh air exchange hoses, tents, extra men. The costs are more and more prohibitive but frankly, the risk of serious injury is real as well. But beyond the cost of safety for onsite workers, liability issues persist.

Inside a vault

1. Safety



Below grade vaults are classified by OSHA as aconfined space. Each year confined spaces cause 92 deaths.

Read more about this in our recent blog post on utility vaults.

Inside a vault

1. Safety


https://www.safe-t-cover.com/blog/using-utility-vaults-for-backflow-preventers-is-this-a-problem


When a vault floods like this one, the mandatory test cocks are submerged, and in that event, a violation of the International Plumbing has already occurred. Consider what would typically make up the constituents of that water. Runoff of lawn chemicals alone make this a clear and present danger to the water supply.

Inside a vault

2. Liability



In fact, it led the USC Foundation of Cross Connection & Hydraulic Research in 2005 to change their recommendation of even double check BFP installation in vaults.

“The foundation’s recommendation would be

to install the double check valve above grade.”

- USC-FCCHR “Crosstalk, Summer 2005

Inside a vault

2. Liability



The foundation added stronger language in 2014.

“When a backflow preventer is installed below

grade, the vault or pit in which an assembly is

installed may fill up with water, The water in the

pit could create a cross-connection between the

water in the pit and the backflow preventer

through the test cocks. This may occur whether

the test cocks are opened or closed….”

- USC-FCCHR “Crosstalk, Summer 2014 .

2. Liability

Inside a vault



Most recently, the foundation had this to say on the subject in 2016.

“"The Foundation recommends assemblies be installed 12” to 36”

above grade. If an assembly needs to be hidden from view for

aesthetic reasons, consideration should be given to installing it behind

a wall or landscaping. For freeze protection or the threat of vandalism

think about installing an assembly in an enclosure instead of a pit or

vault. In some cases, an RP is replaced with a double check valve

assembly (DC) since the DC has “no openings,” therefore reducing the

risk of a cross-connection. Yet, the test cocks found on the DC could

be the site of a cross-connection. If a test cock leaks or is broken off

and becomes submerged backflow could occur through the test cock.

So, instead of preventing backflow; a cross-connection has been

created through the assembly.”

- USC-FCCHR “Crosstalk, Winter 2016 .

2. Liability

Inside a vault


Inside a building

2. Flooding

Here’s what the American Society of Plumbing Engineers advise about indoor RPZs.

“Before an RPZ is located, consideration should be given to both how much water will be discharged, and where it will drain. Consideration must be given to the drain system to assure the drainage system can handle the load. If a drain is not capable of accepting the flow, other choices as to the location of the valve, such as outside in a heated enclosure, should be made.”

-2006 ASPE Plumbing

Engineering Design Handbook, vol 2, p 70



Inside a building

So if an RPZ is designed to dump water, then drain capacity is the issue. The chart on the right is from the manufacturer of the BPA seen in the previous flood photos. It illustrates the anticipated flow rate from the relief valve at various pipe sizes and at various pressures. Note that the assembly shown will flow 375 GPM at 85 PSI. A 4” drain pipe with a 1% fall rate evacuates clean water at a maximum rate of 93 GPM. If that device is flowing at 375 GPM and your clearing 93, then you are flooding at a rate of 282 GPM.

2. Flooding



Inside a building

An article published June 2013 in the Chicago chapter of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers written by David DeBord, a former president of that organization, and current Education chair of the national ASPE, states all these facts better than I can.

2. Flooding



Inside a building

He uses the Manufacturer’s data supplied by a different manufacturer, and he uses a 65 PSI instead of my 85, but he actually does the math in the article and offers FLOOD rates or 219 GPM for 2 1/2 and 3”; and flood rate of 482 GPM for 4”and above.

2. Flooding



Inside a building

He concludes that regarding indoor RPZs…

2. Flooding



Read more about flooding caused by RPZ backflow preventers here.

https://www.safe-t-cover.com/blog/the-dragon-in-the-basement-backflow-prevention-flood-risks


Assuming the legal rights of a person for whom expenses or a debt has been paid. Typically, an insurance company which pays its insured client for injuries and losses then sues the party which the injured person contends caused the damages to him/her.

How Does This Affect Water Districts?

Because of subrogation, the water district needs todemonstrate that no unsafe methods arepromoted by their plans review teams. The bestway to demonstrate that is with publishedstandard details and drawings that are consistentwith recognized best practices.


Let’s look at an example:

This flood occurred in a hospital mechanical room causing over $1M in damage. You are looking at 2 sides of one wall.



On the left, we see that the sudden water flow and volume moved the wall into the next room (right photo), which happened to be a telephone and low-voltage wiring room.



The insurer sought recovery from all the risk holders including the engineer, architect, contractor, subcontractor, and even the most recent recorded tester;



While the details of who paid what were not made public, we do know that the property insurer was made whole by one or more of the listed defendants.



In times past, this event would have been seen as an unforeseeable casualty, a pipe burst. But insurers have been listening to the industry leaders about these risks.


Will CEs take on the task?


U S Survey Results


According to a survey of 1220 civil and plumbing engineers across the nation, a survey in which over 140 Atlanta area consultants participated in over a 19‐month period, 3 out of 4 say they need local water authorities to provide standard details for outdoor aboveground backflow preventer systems.

U S Survey Results


Charlotte, NC

Denver, CO

Columbus, OH

Roswell, GA

Arlington, TX

Gwinnett County, GA

Las Vegas, NV

Updated Standard Details


Updated Standard Details: Northern Georgia

Best Practices: Containment Backflow Preventer Placement

Updated Standard Details

Best Practices: Containment Backflow Preventer Placement

Use these best practice examples to create or update standard details for your water municipality.

Safe-T-Cover will help you create standard details. We have worked with Roswell, GA, Arlington, TX and others so far.

The design community is struggling with newly realized professional liability risks associated with containment BF systems.

The risks include liability and safety of vaults and indoor floods caused by RPZ backflow preventers

The positions of leading organizations and the opinions from experts have alerted casualty carriers to seek recovery from losses through subrogation.

Consultants who can prove the building/water authority directed – or merely suggested – a design that led to a loss will have successfully avoided a liability loss and passed it to the civil authority.

Even if the older methods remain, the presence of details consistent

with best practices provide the legal cover needed to materially reduce the risk of liability through subrogation.

Take-Aways
