Legionella Regulations and Duty Holder Responsibilities

Understand the risks of Legionella

Every building with public water consumption should have safe and clean water. The way to ensure the water is safe is by regular legionella control work and remain up to date on legionella regulations. To keep potable and non-potable water supply systems safe you must schedule regular legionella risk assessments and subsequent legionella control remedial works.

Managing legionella in water systems

Legionella bacteria can form in man-made water systems such as cooling towers, hot and cold water systems, water fountains, hot tubs etc. Some of these systems allow bacteria to multiply more easily. However, this can be properly managed with a legionella risk assessment plan and a well-developed legionella scheme of control.

The responsible duty holder

As the duty holder you must assess the risk in the water systems. This is a requirement of the Health & Safety Executive in their Approved Code of Practice called ACOP L8.

How can water supply systems become contaminated with Legionella?

We often hear of new Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks throughout the world. This proves that although we understand more about Legionnaires’ Disease we are still allowing the bacteria to form and create potential fatal situations. We must continue to ensure legionella does not develop within the water systems we look after. Legionella contamination can occur when water supply systems are improperly maintained, leading to an environment that feeds Legionella growth.

How to stop legionella bacteria growth

The Health and safety Executive (HSE) states that “stagnant water favours Legionella growth. To reduce the risk you should remove dead legs/dead ends in pipe-work, flush out infrequently used outlets (including showerheads and taps) at least weekly and clean and de-scale shower heads and hoses at least quarterly. Cold-water storage tanks should be cleaned periodically and water should be drained from hot water cylinders to check for debris or signs of corrosion”.

At Water Hygiene Consultants we can guide you in a safe and compliant Legionella control programme which includes all of the above measures and more outlined by the HSE.

Legionella prevention rather than cure

It is favourable to look at Legionella control as a regular essential maintenance, rather than something that happens retrospectively. Keep your water systems safe and you should confidently not have to deal with legionella in your water systems.

Legionella control quote

Please contact us today to discuss your job or to receive a no obligation quote. Our team are highly experienced, in-house engineers who can work with you to ensure the water system you look after is safe and compliant.