The plumbing in any private or public building is connected to the community water and sewage disposal system. It is critical to public health that the potable water system is not contaminated and that sewage is conveyed away in a safe manner. The plumbing code is an officially adopted collection of standards, guides and methods that are placed into Oregon law and regulate practices in the plumbing industry. It specifies how plumbing systems and fixtures are to be designed, installed and maintained and provides guidelines for enforcement and consumer recourse. The code is updated about every three years.
A licensing law establishes how plumbers are to be trained and tested in order to become licensed. Licensing of plumbers helps ensure that these individuals are knowledgeable and skilled and will build, install and maintain plumbing in a manner that complies with the code.
