Using a Rapid Bacteria Screening method to assess Legionella Risk (20m Lecture)

High bacterial loads in water systems increase the risk of the presence of pathogenic bacteria such as Legionella and Pseudomonas. Hospitals, hotels, universities and other facilities with large potable water systems, cooling towers and often decorative water features are particularly vulnerable. Although routine biocide treatment will mitigate most concerns, dead legs, scale buildup and biofilms can hide bacterial amplification. Traditional monitoring methods require sample collection and submission to a laboratory for culture plate analysis which can take up to a week results and can be expensive. Oftentimes, the risk assessment is performed when a suspected outbreak has occurred. In these instances, time is of the essence to find the source and mitigate.

This presentation will present two international case studies, one Danish and one Australian, where use of an enzyme based rapid total bacteria method was used for routine monitoring and where, an outbreak was tracked down and mitigated. In both instances, correlation with Legionella plate counts was used to verify data. A description of the USEPA verified technology and its correlation to HPC will be discussed along with a demonstration showing how data can be collected in as little as 15 minutes.