Legionella is a bacterium that is commonly found in natural water sources such as lakes, reservoirs and rivers, usually in small concentrations that pose no threat to public health. However, once this water enters man-made water systems such as fire sprinkler systems, under certain environmental conditions there is a risk that any Legionella bacteria that are present in the water may proliferate, increasing the risks associated with Legionnaires’ disease.
Fire sprinkler systems do present a legionella risk and so sprinkler maintenance routines should be amended and incorporated in to the legionella monitoring and control programmes that you currently have in place.
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