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Our experts will work with you to develop tailored water management policies and procedures and document clearly how you intend to achieve your aims. This is designed to cover all aspects of legionella risk management including allocation of responsibilities, compliance procedures, strategy, how you will track and record the progress of your remedial actions and record on-going monitoring tasks to ensure your systems remain safe.
The legionella management plan is intended to clearly document and communicate an organisation’s legionella policy and procedures and provide a roadmap to compliance and support ongoing adherence to the regulatory and guidance requirements. Particularly in larger organisations, the allocation of clear lines of responsibility and communication can become blurred and having a documented approach to the procedural control of legionella risk assists enormously in developing the necessary understanding of legionella risk, the management procedures to be followed and how to respond if problematic conditions are encountered.
Legionella is a bacterium that can cause Legionnaires’ disease, as well as the similar but less serious conditions of Pontiac fever and Lochgoilhead fever. People contract Legionnaires’ disease by inhaling small droplets of water (aerosols), suspended in the air, containing the bacteria.
Legionella bacteria are widespread in natural water systems, such as rivers and ponds. However, the conditions are rarely right for people to catch the disease from these sources. Outbreaks of the illness occur from exposure to legionella growing in purpose-built systems where water is maintained at a temperature high enough to encourage growth such as cooling towers, evaporative condensers, hot and cold-water systems and spa pools used in all sorts of premises (work and domestic).
Legionella bacteria can cause Legionnaires’ disease, a potentially fatal type of pneumonia. It can also lead to other similar, but less serious conditions, of Pontiac fever and Lochgoilhead fever. Any water system has the potential to become a hazard to health, from a change in environmental conditions on site, an unnoticed system malfunction or a physical change in the system and use of the premises.
A legionella risk assessment involves a full inspection and assessment of the configuration, construction and condition of your water system. The purpose is to identify whether the equipment associated with the system such as pumps, heat exchangers, showers etc, and its constituent part are likely to create a risk from exposure to legionella.
A Water Management Policy, Plan and Procedure Document is designed to help your organisation set clear goals for water management. It is an auditable document that details clearly how you will manage the risks and track any remedial actions and on-going monitoring of the water systems. Your management plan should be reviewed annually and is an essential document to fulfil the statutory obligations.
Our clients benefit from AEC’s online portal. Available 24/7 all your records are contained in an easy-to-use management system. It’s a fast interactive system providing secure access to all reports and data to view at any time. View AEC’s Client Portal here.
The Duty Holder is the employer or person in control of the premises.
The Duty Holder is required to manage the risk from legionella bacteria by:
Duties under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA) extend to risks from legionella bacteria, which may arise from work activities. More specifically, the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) provide a framework of actions designed to assess, prevent or control the risk from bacteria like Legionella and take suitable precautions. The Approved Code of Practice: Legionnaires’ disease: The control of Legionella bacteria in water systems (L8) contains practical guidance on how to manage and control the risks in your system.
The Legionella Control Association (LCA) is a membership organisation for providers of services and products concerned with the control of legionella bacteria in water systems. A valid registration with the LCA is evidence that the Member has an appropriate management system in place to comply with the LCA Member Commitments and that these are regularly audited by the LCA.
