§ 8-02 Definitions.
RCNY § 8-02
When used in this Chapter, the following terms mean: "ANSI/ASHRAE 188-2015" means the latest edition of ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 188 Legionellosis: Risk Management for Building Water Systems, a publication issued by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). "Bacteriological indicator" means a biological process control indicator that estimates microbial content in the circulating water of a cooling tower system, such as heterotrophic plate count (HPC) as measured in a water sample or by a dip slide. "Biocidal indicator" means a direct or indirect measure of the effectiveness of biocide, consisting of free halogen residual concentration or oxidation reduction potential (ORP), as specified in the management program and plan. "Building" means any structure used or intended for supporting or sheltering any use or occupancy. The term shall be construed as if followed by the phrase "structure, premises, lot or part thereof" unless otherwise indicated by the text. "Cleaning" means physical, mechanical or other removal of biofilm, scale, debris, rust, other corrosion products, sludge, algae and other potential sources of contamination. “Commissioning” means performing the system startup for a newly installed cooling tower system or cooling tower equipment or for the first time. This may include filling the equipment or system with water and recirculating the water. "Compliance inspection" means the inspection, testing and other activities that are required on a regular basis (at least every 90 days) in accordance with the maintenance program and plan and this Chapter, including the completion of a written or electronic checklist, and must be conducted and certified by a qualified person. “Cooling tower” {“CT” or “Cooling tower equipment”) means any device using recirculating water where such water is exposed to air for evaporative cooling, radiant cooling, or air cleaning or scrubbing. “Cooling tower system” (“CTS” or “system”) means a single or multiple cooling towers, which may share some or all superstructure components, and all of the process instruments and appurtenances through which water flows or with which water has contact, including all cooling tower system components. “Cooling tower system components” (“CTS components” or “components”) means all of the individual devices, parts, or units in the cooling tower system that interact with the recirculating water that flows to the cooling tower. Any mechanical part or equipment that has a wet surface during water circulation is a component. These include, but are not limited to all cooling tower equipment, chillers, water-cooled condensers, heat exchangers and other heat transfer devices, circulation pumps, treatment devices, chemical controllers, metering pumps, filtration devices, process control measurement location(s) and related equipment, and all associated piping and fittings. "Corrective actions" mean disinfection, cleaning, flushing, and other activities to remedy biofilm growth, Legionella proliferation, or other system mechanical problems identified through monitoring, inspections, or other means as may be determined by the Department. "Dead legs" mean lengths of pipe normally closed at one end or ending in a fitting within the cooling tower system that limits water circulation and is likely to result in stagnant water in the system. “Decommissioning” means the removal or permanent discontinuation of use of a cooling tower system or cooling tower equipment. Decommissioning includes removal of all water, permanent disconnection of water supply to the cooling tower system, and permanent disconnection of the power supply for the cooling tower equipment. "Department" means the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. "Dip slide" means a method to test for microorganisms (such as HPC) consisting of a sterile culture medium affixed to a sterile slide, that is dipped directly into the liquid that is to be sampled. "Disinfection" means using one or more of the biocides registered with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation at a defined concentration, under specific conditions and for an established period that will kill or inactivate pathogenic microorganisms. "Drift eliminator" means a system of baffles or cells that cause separation of entrained water designed to remove aerosols from cooling tower exhaust. "Heterotrophic plate count" or "HPC" means a measure of the concentration of microorganisms that require an external source of organic carbon for growth including bacteria, yeasts and mold in water samples. “Installation” means the physical connection of cooling tower equipment to a water supply and a power supply by piping and plumbing work. " Legionella " means the genus of bacteria which is ubiquitous in aqueous environments, including the recirculated water of cooling tower systems that are not properly or regularly maintained. There are more than 50 different species of Legionella, all of which are potentially pathogenic. " Legionella sample" means water or other sample to be examined for the presence of viable Legionella bacteria using semiselective culture media and procedures specific to the cultivation and detection of Legionella species, such as those outlined in International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Standards 11731-1:1998 and 11731-2:2004. "Maintenance program and plan" or "plan" means a written set of measures describing monitoring, cleaning, disinfection and all other activities for the prevention and control of Legionella growth in a cooling tower system, that is in accordance with section 5, 6 and 7.2 of ANSI/ASHRAE 188 and with the manufacturer's instructions, and is developed by a qualified person. "Makeup water" means water added to the cooling tower system on a regular basis to replace water lost by evaporation, drift or leakage and to maintain optimal system operation and process control. "Management and maintenance team" means the individual or individuals designated by a building owner to be responsible for the continued effective and safe operation of a cooling tower system. “Operation” (or “operating”) means the condition that exists after a cooling tower or cooling tower system has been filled or partially filled with water. Cooling towers with non-continuous use, including seasonal or on demand use, are in operation, independent of whether the system is actively providing thermal/heat exchange as long as water is present in the cooling tower system. “Operation period” means the time period for operation of a cooling tower system based on its planned use. Operation periods must be reported at time of registration, in a manner specified by the Department, which shall include, at a minimum, annual (year-round), seasonal (summer operation), seasonal (winter operation), or on demand (a cooling tower does not run continuously but is put into operation only when needed). "Owner" means any person, agent, firm, partnership, corporation or other legal entity having a legal or equitable interest in, or control of the premises. "Process control measures" mean actions that must be taken to evaluate internal functioning of the cooling tower system, including monitoring conductivity, pH, biological indicators and other parameters, and observing phenomenon such as scaling, corrosion and biofilm. "Qualified person" means a New York State licensed and registered professional engineer; a certified industrial hygienist; a certified water technologist with training and experience developing management plans and performing inspections in accordance with current standard industry protocols including, but not limited to ANSI/ASHRAE 188; or an environmental consultant who has at least two (2) years of operational experience in water management planning and operation. "Responsible person" means a person employed or whose services are retained by an owner, who understands and is capable of performing the required daily water quality measurements, weekly system monitoring and operation and maintenance of a cooling tower system in accordance with the maintenance program and plan, and making recommendations for diagnosing anomalous conditions that require corrective actions, under the guidance of a qualified person. The responsible person should be capable of measuring water pH, temperature and disinfectant residual levels at proper locations/frequencies; checking biocide storage container levels; recording dates, amounts and times of biocide injection; and logging all other relevant data and comments. "Risk management assessment" means a process for comprehensively identifying, describing and evaluating in detail all aspects of a cooling tower system that may potentially contribute to the growth and dissemination of Legionella bacteria. "Routine monitoring" means evaluation and other activities that must be completed periodically in accordance with the maintenance program and plan and this Chapter. "Stagnant water" means water that is confined, standing, experiencing a period of low flow or usage, and not being actively circulated through the cooling tower system. "Standard methods" means accepted protocols for sampling, recording, laboratory testing, reporting and other procedures related to environmental and water quality sampling, including, but not limited to, those set forth in Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater 22nd Edition, 2012, a publication issued jointly by the American Public Health Association, the American Water Works Association and the Water Environment Federation and the Standards Microbiological Methods (TC 147/SC4) published by the International Organization for Standardization, or successor editions. "Summertime hyperhalogenation" means a one-time per year dosing of higher than normal levels of chlorine or bromine based biocide conducted between July 1 and August 31 to ensure the maintenance of a minimum of 5 parts per million (ppm) free halogen residual in the cooling tower system for at least 6 hours. “System shutdown” (or “shutdown”) means the process of suspending the operation of a given cooling tower system by fully draining any water from all components of the cooling tower system in accordance with requirements of this Chapter. “System startup” (or “startup”) means the process of putting one or more cooling tower(s) or component(s) of a cooling tower system into operation in accordance with requirements of this Chapter. "Water quality parameters" means temperature, pH, conductivity, biocidal indicator, bacteriological indicator and other chemical and physical indicators of system process control. (Added City Record 4/7/2016, eff. 5/7/2016; amended City Record 7/7/2020, eff. 7/7/2020; amended City Record 4/8/2026, eff. 5/8/2026)
