HSE Policy on Legionella Inspections Reversed:

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Letter to Branches




No. 094/13
Ref EX5
Date: 15 February 2013

To: All Branches

 
Dear Colleagues,

HSE Policy on Legionella Inspections Reversed:

In a major policy reversal the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has decided to bring back pro-active inspections of cooling towers and similar water systems that pose a Legionella risks following last year's fatal Legionella outbreaks.

A 2012 investigation by 'Environmental Health News' found that there had been a massive drop in the number of such HSE Inspections, with 40% less Inspections by Local Authorities Environmental Health Officers and 44% less by the HSE Inspectors.

The withdrawal of pro-active Inspections of cooling towers has been linked by some to serious outbreaks of Legionella. In 2012 there were outbreaks in Edinburgh, where 100 people were injured and three died and in Stoke-on-Trent where two more people died.

At the time in July 2012 the HSE resisted re-instituting pro-active Inspections. Instead it responded to these outbreaks by issuing a Safety Notice, warning of risks from Cooling Towers and Evaporation Condensers.

Finally however, the HSE has agreed that organisations with Cooling Towers will be checked, although checking all 5,000 sites in the UK with Cooling Towers with take 18 months.

The Coalition Government's 2011 Strategy Document "Good Health and Safety - Good For Everyone" outlined it's plans to drastically cut HSE Inspections by a third, prompting concern over an expected fall in pro-active Inspections of workplaces, against a background of an already existing and worrying trend of year on year significant falls in both Safety Inspections and Accident Investigations by HSE Inspectors and Local Authority EHOs.

Basildon Hospital is another case in point - the Hospital Trust having just been found guilty after Legionnaires’ deaths. A Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Trust statement has admitted failing to protect the public from deadly Legionnaires’ disease. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted the Trust following a series of cases of the disease, four fatal between 2007 - 2011. Patients died and many others became ill, after cost-cutting reductions in a water treatment programme came into effect. 

While the decision to reverse its policy and re-introduce pro-active Inspections of Cooling Towers represents a policy turnaround for the better, it is limited to this one issue - and that came about after the deaths of five people. Time will tell if this terrible Coalition
Government's continued attacks on Health and Safety at Work will lead to more unnecessary deaths and injuries to Workers and members of the public.

Are there Legionella risks in your workplace?
Any water system, with the right environmental conditions, could be a source for legionella bacteria growth. There is a reasonably foreseeable legionella risk if the water system:
1. has a water temperature between 20–45 °C
2. creates and/or spreads breathable droplets, e.g. aerosol created by a cooling tower, or water outlets
3. stores and/or re-circulates water likely to contain a source of food for the organism, e.g. presence of sludge, scale or fouling


The most common sources of legionella in man-made water systems are:
1. cooling tower (including evaporative condensers)[1]
2. hot and cold water systems[2]
3. spa pools[3]


There are also a number of other risk systems[4] that may pose a risk to exposure to legionella, e.g.
1. humidifiers,
2. air washers,
3. emergency showers,
4. indoor ornamental fountains etc.
Employer, or persons in control of premises (e.g. landlords), have a duty to manage legionella risks. Further information is available in
the attached pdf file version of the HSE Legionnaires Disease Approved Code of Practice L8 (ACoP) [5].

Duties under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA) extend to risks from legionella bacteria, which may arise from work activities. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (MHSWR) provide a broad framework for controlling health and safety at work and more specifically the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) provide a framework of duties designed to assess, prevent or control the risk from bacteria like Legionella and take suitable precautions. "Legionnaire's disease:

The Control of Legionella Bacteria in Water Systems (L8) (ACoP) - copy attached - [1] contains practical guidance on how to manage and control the risks in your system. Employers, or a person in control of the premises, is responsible for health and safety and need to take the right precautions to reduce the risks of exposure to legionella.

Safety Reps should raise any concerns with Management using the attached information and report any serious failures to address any problems to the appropriate Enforcing Authority once representations are exhausted or refer to the Health, Safety & Environment Department for assistance and guidance.


Yours Sincerely



Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer