3216 Cooling tower maintenance and other controls for the effective management of Legionella risk

Overview:

Outbreaks of Legionnaires disease continue to occur worldwide, often linked to man-made water systems such as cooling towers and evaporative condensers, which can provide the ideal habitat for the Legionella bacterium.

Detailed information sections in the EI’s Legionellosis risk management and Legionella control. Guidance for oil and gas facilities, offshore platforms and refineries (2012) are aimed at informing industry on symptoms and ecology of Legionella as well as at providing description of relevant general legislation.  

Besides these legislation covering occupational health and safety in the United Kingdom and guidance for managing health and safety at work, The Notification of Cooling Towers and Evaporative Condensers Regulations 1992 require operators of all such devices to notify the local authority when installed. Any changes to the information required to be notified under the regulations should always be notified within one month after their occurrence. Where a device ceases to be in service , or in deed, is intended to be decommissioned, that fact should always be notified to the local authority concerned as soon as is reasonably practicable after the cessation. This requirement does not apply where the device is out of service for maintenance or for seasonal shutdown.

This publication sets out a framework to assist operators of cooling towers and evaporative condensers in meeting the requirements of current relevant legislation in the United Kingdom.