There are multiple hazards that need to be considered and protected against on construction sites. While most of these surround the use of dangerous machinery and unfinished buildings, other environmental hazards must be considered as well.
One of these hazards is water hygiene. Due to the often unstable nature of building sites, it can be even more difficult than usual to achieve, but nonetheless, it forms a crucial element of risk management. Let’s look at exactly why water hygiene is so important for construction businesses. For further reading, take a look at expert resources such as the Water Hygiene Centre website.
It’s a regulatory requirement
Under Schedule 2 of The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, it is stipulated that the provision of safe, clean and reliable water is a legal requirement on worksites in the UK.
Workers must be provided with clean running water that they can use to wash their hands, easily accessible drinking water at all times, toilets (preferably flushable) and in some cases, showers.
To ensure the safety of these water sources, it’s generally necessary to have a water hygiene plan in place. In order to achieve this, construction companies can employ the expertise of water hygiene experts for training, risk assessments and other services.
Protecting against Legionnaires’ disease
One of the main water-related hazards that need to be mitigated on building sites is the risk posed by the bacteria Legionella pneumophila. A form of bacteria that’s commonly found in natural water sources, when present in high enough concentrations, it can lead to an often fatal form of atypical pneumonia called Legionnaires’ disease.
The risk of Legionnaires’ disease is especially high on demolition and refurbishment projects, where water sources may have lain stagnant at temperatures conducive to bacterial growth for long periods of time.
Assess Control and Review
There’s an effective three-step model to protect against the risk of Legionella bacteria, called the Assess, Control and Review model.
The first step is to identify water sources that could be potential growth spots for Legionella pneumophila. Potentially dangerous environments consist of places where water can stagnate, which include storage containers and water pipes that aren’t frequently flushed out.
The second step is to prevent those environments from occurring. This means draining stagnant water sources and ensuring that any stored water is above 60C or below 20C.
Next, you review the steps you’ve put in place. In construction environments that are subject to continual change, it’s even more important to keep on top of these reviews.
Emergency water supplies
In the case that a water source is compromised, an event with a high probability in environments like construction sites, it’s important to have a back up plan in place. At a very minimum, this needs to provide drinking water to workers, however, your responsibilities may extend beyond that.
As we’ve seen, it is both a legal duty and a practical responsibility for construction sites to take water hygiene responsibly. There are a number of considerations in this regard, which will generally require liaising with a water hygiene specialist.
