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Listen to Scientific and Technology Experts speaking about managing the risks associated with a Legionella outbreak and advancing health and safety.

Get answers to your questions!

• What is Legionella and why should we test for it?
• What is Legionella Risk Assessment?
• Why is routine monitoring and surveillance important?
• How do I go about sampling and what type of Laboratory Analysis is required?
• What are the consequences if Legionella is detected, and how to resolve the problem?
• What are the risks, costs and legal liabilities involved?

What is Legionella?

Legionella is a group of bacteria that are naturally found in freshwater sources. It can grow and spread in man-made water systems such as piping, cooling towers, hot and cold holding tanks, ventilation and air-condition operations as well as various other plumbing and sanitation systems.

Legionella (specifically L. pneumophila) cause Legionnaires disease - a progressive pneumonia type illness that has a fatality rate of approximately 12,5% in the general population that it infects. It spread through aerosolized water droplets – it is not caused by contaminated food / water, nor is it considered contagious.

The actual number of community acquired Legionnaires' disease is unknown as the level of surveillance, testing and reporting varies. In South Africa, it is a notifiable disease, but testing is not done on a routine basis. In 2013, Legionella was identified as a hazardous biological agent, group 2 (HBA – Group 2) and as such its control forms part of the requirements of OHS Act (Occupational Health& Safety Act, no 85 of 1993).

For the past few years, the South African Bureau of Standards has worked together with members of the Legionella Action Group (LAG), water treatment companies and members of industry to set up a standard specifically for Legionella risk reduction for South African industries. The standards were released to the public in 2013 and goes hand in hand with the OHS Act, but provides more detailed guidelines on management risk reduction, requirements for various systems in terms of treatment, testing, corrective actions and record keeping.

Routes of infection:

At risk industries

Environmental and mining operations
Commercial water users, and suppliers of water in containers (tanks, bottles etc,)
Industrial water users of cooling towers, evaporative condensers, HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning)
Medical, dental, health, fitness and wellness industries
Food and Beverage sectors - process water sprayers, misters, sprinkling and ice systems
Water cleaning, treatment and sanitation industries as well as washing stations
Tourism and hospitality sectors - functional showers and taps
Agriculture and farming, compost and horticulture sectors
Pharmaceutical and cosmetic manufacturers
Recreational water users – swimming pool, spa’s, jacuzzies, saunas, hot-tups etc.

Growth conditions:

Temperature optimal growth range of 20 – 45oC
Stagnant / low flow water areas
Systems that have corrosion, deposition or biological growth with a source of iron and other nutrients
As part of biofilms

Regulatory Framework:

Occupational Health and Safety Act, no 85 of 1993
SANS 893-1, Legionnaires’ disease Part 1: Risk management
SANS 893-2, Legionnaires’ disease Part 2: The control of Legionella in water systems.