A new standard published by ASHRAE establishes minimum legionellosis risk management requirements for buildings and their associated water systems. According to ASHRAE, the standard is intended for use by owners and managers of human-occupied buildings and those involved in the design, construction, installation, commissioning, operation, maintenance and service of centralized building water systems and components.
ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 188-2015, Legionellosis: Risk Management for Building Water Systems, provides specific requirements for what legionellosis control strategies must accomplish and how they should be documented. However, the new standard does not provide or place restrictions on specific strategies to be used or applied, ASHRAE’s press release notes. The standard also includes specific requirements related to the establishment of a “Program Team” and a “Water Management Program” for which building owners are responsible.
For more information, see ASHRAE’s press release on the new standard.
AIHA recently released new guidance on recognition, evaluation, and control of Legionella colonization and amplification in common building water systems, both with and without any associated disease such as legionellosis. For more information, see the guideline’s page.