ACOP L8 legionella Risk Assessmenet Services and the BS8580 Standard.
Aqua Legion Provide ACOP L8 legionella risk assessments and BS8580 standard legionella risk assessments. If you require a ACOP L8 legionella risk assessment or BS8580 Standard risk assessment you have come to the right place.
When conducting the acop l8 legionella risk assessment or BS8580 standard risk assessment it is important to remember that a number of factors are required to create a risk of contracting Legionnaires’ disease or legionellosis. As a result it is extremely important to be able to demonstrate competence when assigning a risk rating to a water system. All of Aqua Legion UK Ltd risk assessors are competent to conduct risk assessments on the buildings they are assigned to manage.
Download a e-copy of ACOP L8 right here:
Our ACOP L8 legionella risk assessments and commitment to BS8580 ensures the risk rating is derived by assessing the following:-
- The actual and potential risk for Legionella bacteria to colonise and proliferate in the system.
- The actual and potential risk for the Legionella to be disseminated in an aerosol form.
- The actual and potential risk for susceptible individuals to be exposed.
Further to this, the effectiveness of the control and preventative measures in place are assessed along with the effects of out of line situations on the risk levels, the management structure and communication structure as minimum. Whilst it is not considered essential to take water samples as part of an ACOP L8 legionella risk assessment or BS8580 risk assessment. It should be pointed out that in line with BS8580 the assessor may be required to take samples if they suspect the control scheme not to be working or if there is no control scheme implemented to cover the site being risk assessed.
Why isn’t sampling mandatory in a ACOP L8 legionella risk assessment or the BS8580 risk assessment standard?
If water samples are tested for legionella and positive results are obtained this would increase both the actual and potential risk and therefore the risk rating.
Whilst Aqua Legion UK do normally recommend that legionella samples be collected as part of the ACOP L8 risk assessment it is not mandatory. However, legionella testing will define the presence or absence of legionella in the water system. It will also confirm the type of legionella and numbers if present. This information can then be used to define the level of risk in a more refined detail in the most cost effective manner.
Finding that the assessors recommendation is to take samples of the system as they suspect legionella present and then needing to pay for another visit in addition to the risk assessment visit simply means additional costs to the client so we often recommend that the sample be taken in conjunction with the risk assessment to kill two birds with one stone as they say and ultimately keep the costs down for the client.
Furthermore, you should be aware that Legionella positive results have been obtained from the most un-suspecting water systems in the past. It should also be highlighted that the an ACOP L8 legionella risk assessment and BS8580 risk assessment is a none destructive survey, hidden pipework and dead legs can often create areas for bacterial growth and contamination. The possibility of hidden dead leg would not be confirmed through visual inspection. However, water sampling can provide an indication or confirmation where dead legs may be suspected to be present.
However,
One of the reasons legionella testing is not mandatory is because the absence of legionella bacteria should not lead to complacency!! The potential for legionella growth may be significant even if legionella bacteria are not identified at the time of survey and therefore it’s absence may not necessarily reduce the risk rating and its absence should by no means lead to complacency.
Note: ACOP L8 Legionella risk assessments based on a score rating system should be treated with caution. Score systems can lead to gross misinterpretation of the risk rating assigned to a system. Far too often we see water systems being assigned a high risk due to the score system where the risk is actually low. A classic example of this is a low volume local water heater which is often misinterpreted as high risk.
Aqua Legion UK use seven levels of risk – when rating systems.
- Negligible Risk
- Low Risk
- Low Medium Risk
- Medium Risk
- Medium High Risk
- High Risk
- Immediate High Risk
The assignment of the risk rating is based on a complex combination of factors including our extensive competence, knowledge and real world practical experience.
by using Aqua Legion UK, you can be rest assured that each assessment is individually drafted to create a site and client specific service designed to achieve compliance to HSE guidance.
ACOP L8 legionella risk assessment services
The provision of ACOP L8 legionella risk assessment services is what Aqua Legion specialise in. Whether you require an ACOP L8 legionella risk assessment that is simply compliant or would like a detailed and comprehensive legionella and water hygiene risk assessment report Aqua Legion are the company that can deliver a responsive, professional and competent service.