Plumbing Code of Australia
The Plumbing Code of Australia (PCA) is produced by the National Plumbing Regulators Forum on behalf of each State and Territory Government.
The goal of the PCA is to enable the achievement of an acceptable standard of installation at all times in order to provide for:
- public health, safety and amenity;
- resource and environment conservation;
- sustainability; and
- protection of public and private infrastructure
for the benefit of the community now and in the future.
The PCA sets out performance based technical provisions for the design, construction, installation, replacement, repair, alteration and maintenance of plumbing and drainage installations throughout Australia.
It also sets out the requirements for the use of materials and products in plumbing and drainage installations and defines the processes for the certification and authorisation of materials and products that require statutory authorisation to enable their use in plumbing and drainage installations.
The PCA currently incorporates provisions for:
- Water services
- Sanitary plumbing and drainage systems
- Stormwater drainage systems
- Heating, ventilating and air-conditioning
- On-site wastewater management systems
- Materials and products certification and authorisation
Requirements in the PCA extend no further than is necessary in the public interest, are cost effective, easily understood and are not needlessly onerous in their application. They also ensure that any plumbing and drainage installation is fit for its intended purpose, does not have any adverse impact on the environment and can continue to function as intended without excessive maintenance.
The NPRF is currently conducting a review of the PCA to ensure that it is accurate and current.
For a copy of the PCA and referenced standards including the National Plumbing and Drainage Code AS/NZS 3500 visit www.saiglobal.com/shop/.
The PCA is only given legal effect by relevant State or Territory legislation, and may be subject to variation or additional provisions. Please refer to your jurisdictional regulator for more information on what is applicable in your area.
