Cooling water systems and legionella control

Owners and operators must register regulated cooling towers and warm-water systems with Council and meet maintenance, testing and reporting requirements to help control Legionella bacteria.

Poorly maintained cooling water systems (cooling towers) and warm water systems may provide ideal conditions for the growth and transmission of Legionella bacteria.

These systems may spread the bacteria, via tiny water droplets, which when inhaled can cause Legionnaires' disease – the infection can be fatal to people with weakened immune systems.

Installation of a New System and Unique Identification Numbers

The occupier must notify Council of the new installation of a Cooling Water system within 1 month by completing and submitting the following:

Complete the Regulated Premises Notification Form. Once submitted, a member of our Environmental Health team will contact you to discuss next steps. Please include a site plan showing the location of the new system
Please note: There is a fee for submitting this form as outlined in the AlburyCity Fees and Charges.
Notification of a cooling water system is legally required under the Local Government (General) Regulation 2005 and the Public Health Regulation 2022.

Once Council is notified, a unique identification number (UID) will be provided for each tower in the system.

The Regulation requires the UID to be displayed on a sign affixed to each cooling tower. The sign must be:

Minimum size of 148mm by 210mm (A5 size);
Clearly visible to a person examining or inspecting the cooling water system; and
made of a durable material

Before the system starts operating, a risk assessment must be completed and have a risk management plan in place.

What is Legionnaires Disease?

Legionnaires disease is a severe form of pneumonia caused by the inhalation of legionella bacteria, and can be potentially fatal to people with already weakened immune systems.

Legionella bacteria is not spread from person to person, but typically found in moist environments where it is then dispersed via tiny droplets, otherwise known as an aerosol. Legionnaires disease can occur after a person breathes in contaminated water or dust.

Water cooling systems used to cool air in large buildings need to be closely monitored to control the risks associated with the Legionella bacteria.

Management of Cooling Water Systems

Cooling water systems must be managed safely in accordance with the following legislation and relevant Australian Standards.

NSW Public Health Act 2010 Division 2
NSW Public Health Regulation 2022 Part 3 Div 2
Australian/New Zealand Standard 3666 Parts 1, 2 and 3 – these documents are available from Standards Australia

Council’s Environmental Health team are required to maintain a register of regulated systems and have the authority to perform inspections of cooling towers. Inspections will be carried out at least once a year to assess compliance with the requirements under Public Health Regulation 2022. Inspections will be invoiced in accordance with Council's Fees and Charges.

Occupiers are responsible for ensuring that their cooling water system/s are managed in accordance with the legislation. Further information can be found in the NSW Health Factsheet Managing cooling water systems throughout their lifecycle

The Public Health Regulation 2022 requires that:

A competent person undertakes a risk assessment of the cooling water system every five years (or more frequently if required);
A competent person documents a risk assessment in an RMP and prepares a certificate of RMP completion; and
The certificate of RMP completion is provided to Council within 7 days of completing the risk assessment.

The frequency that a new risk assessment is undertaken of a system is determined by the competent person.

There are other instances in which a new risk assessment is required as outlined in the Regulation.

Occupiers are required to ensure all cooling water systems are sampled and tested on a monthly basis for Legionella and heterotropic colony count (HCC).

If a reportable test result of Legionella count is ≥1,000 colony forming units per mililitre (cfu/mL) or HCC ≥5,000,000 cfu/mL is obtained, the occupier is responsible for notifying Council within 24 hours of receiving the result.

The results must be provided by completing NSW HEALTH - Approved Form 4 - Notification of reportable test result.

Audits of the Risk Management Plans are to be conducted on an annual basis. The occupier must engage an independent auditor to audit compliance with the RMP and Regulation.

The audit must be conducted within two months after the end of the 12 month audit period.

A list of approved auditors can be found on the list of NSW Health approved auditors of cooling systems.

The occupier must submit the Certificate of Audit Completion to Council within 7 days of the completion of the audit. Council's EHOs will review the certificate of audit completion and will investigate systems that do not comply with the RMP and Regulation.

The occupier must notify Council of the decommissioning of a cooling water system within 7 days by completing NSW HEALTH Approved Form 6 - Notification of installation or change in particulars.