The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) investigated what causes Legionnaires’ disease cases and discovered that a strong majority of reported cases are due to process failures including not having an effective Legionella bacteria Water Management Program1 . Does your facility have a Water Management Program (WMP) and how do you know if it has all of the crucial requirements?
Listed below are components that every WMP should include.
- Risk Assessment Survey
- The first step for each WMP is to have a Risk Assessment Survey to identify areas or devices in your building where risk from Legionella bacteria is greatest.
- For Barclay’s WMPs, one of our trained Environmental Group Managers will perform the Risk Assessment Survey onsite.
- Critical Control Locations
- Critical Control Locations are the areas of greatest concern for Legionella bacteria growth and aerosolization. These areas will have been identified in the Risk Assessment Survey. Most common examples of Critical Control Locations are cooling towers, decorative fountains, domestic water tanks, shower wand/hoses and ice machines. For each Location, specific actions to control Legionella growth must be implemented.
- Flow Diagrams
- A successful WMP will include flow diagrams displaying the potable and utility water systems in a clear and concise manner for your facility.
- Team
- A proper WMP has a defined team that collaborates to maintain building water systems and is responsible for developing, implementing and maintaining the WMP. The team should be multidisciplinary and meet on a quarterly basis.
- Validation
- One of the final components of a WMP is having a method of validation to confirm the effectiveness Legionella bacteria control.
- Current Information
- WMPs must be updated annually or more frequently if there are major changes in the water systems or Team. WMPs are living breathing documents and will change over time.
Contact Barclay for your Water Management Program needs. Barclay has created, implemented, and validated hundreds of WMPs in partnership with our customers.
References
1- “CDC Vital Signs Legionnaires’ Disease.” CDC, 7 June 2016, www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/pdf/2016-06-vitalsigns.pdf.
