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What it regulates
Regulates Legionella prevention and control in installations capable of exposing people. Section 4 expressly refers to the LPRL and protection against biological and chemical agents. This entry addresses staff operating, maintaining, checking, cleaning or disinfecting these installations and the controls needed to limit their exposure.
Who it applies to
OSH selection: prevention duties, installation-holder and contractor responsibilities, task-related plans, treatment safety, training and relevant transitions. Public-health plans do not replace occupational risk assessment. This entry does not reproduce all epidemiological surveillance, penalties or health-reporting arrangements without a direct link to this selection.
Key provisions
The LPRL, Prevention Services Regulation and, in particular, Royal Decrees 664/1997 and 374/2001 apply. Biological aerosol risks and chemical treatment risks must be assessed within occupational prevention.
Article 4Outsourcing must document the tasks and does not remove the holder’s responsibility to ensure installations do not endanger public health. Since the 2024 amendment, where operator and owner differ, the operator is responsible unless responsibility of the owner is reliably established. This does not replace each party’s occupational safety duties.
Article 5The PPCL must identify the installation, aerosol-emission points, maintenance, treatment, sampling and training suited to tasks and functions. Documentation must be available to maintenance staff and contracted services; records are kept for at least five years.
Article 8The PSL is based on risk assessment, critical points, controls and verification. Where it is chosen, the PPCL must remain until the PSL is designed, planned and validated with evidence demonstrating effectiveness.
Article 9Physical systems must not create risks for operators or other exposed people. The 2024 amendment specifies manufacturer safety and efficacy documentation. Substances and mixtures used must comply with REACH and CLP and must not endanger those applying them.
Article 17Training must match the role. Minor operations, technical responsibility and treatment application have different requirements; a single course must not be assumed necessary or sufficient for everyone. Treatment personnel are linked to qualification SEA492_2 or certification of the corresponding competence units, subject to transitional provision three.
Article 18The programme must allocate tasks to in-house and external staff, identify responsibilities and describe cleaning and disinfection procedures, products, doses and precautions. These organisation and safe-work rules are selected, rather than every health parameter in the annex.
Annex IVHistory and versions
BOE publication: 22/06/2022 · Initial entry into force: 02/01/2023
BOE-A-2022-10297Royal Decree 3/2023 added health-reporting paragraphs to section 11, subsequently corrected; these remain contextual and outside the selected occupational amendment pairs. The correction of 11 February 2023 affects, among other matters, section 17.2. Royal Decree 614/2024 revised responsibilities, sampling, treatments and annexes and added transitions. Tables distinguish amendments affecting selected OSH portions from other changes to the same section or annex.
Royal Decree 3/2023: adds paragraphs to section 11; health reporting outside the selected occupational table.
BOE-A-2023-628Correction of 11 February 2023, including section 17.2 on substances and mixtures.
BOE-A-2023-3619Correction of 14 February 2023 to Royal Decree 3/2023; health-reporting context.
BOE-A-2023-3843Royal Decree 614/2024: amendment published on 3 July 2024 and effective from 4 July 2024; plan updates before 1 July 2025 and sampling-accreditation transition until 1 January 2030.
BOE-A-2024-13422Text versions of the selected OSH provisions
| Publication | Effective date | Official reference | Affected provisions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22/06/2022 | 02/01/2023 | BOE-A-2022-10297 | Article 2, Article 3, Article 4, Article 5, Article 7, Article 8, Article 9, Article 11, Article 16, Article 17, Article 18, Transitional provision first, Transitional provision third, Repealing provision sole, Final provision third, Annex I, Annex IV |
| 03/07/2024 | 04/07/2024 | BOE-A-2024-13422 | Article 2, Article 5, Article 11, Article 17, Transitional provision fifth, Transitional provision sixth |
Transitional provisions and application notes
Published on 22 June 2022 and effective from 2 January 2023, when it replaced Royal Decree 865/2003. Initial plan updating was due after one year; the additional 2024 update was required before 1 July 2025. Both milestones precede this entry’s review date.
Final provision thirdThe transition for course-completion certificates and staff qualification runs for five years from commencement, subject to conditions and possible regional measures. It is neither a training exemption nor an indefinite extension; each person’s role and status must be checked.
Transitional provision thirdAccreditation of the sampling entity or business under section 11.5 has a transition until 1 January 2030. Annex VI sampling rules remain mandatory during that period. This must not be confused with the separate deadline for laboratory-method accreditation.
Transitional provision sixthBiocides must be used under their authorisation and application conditions. Health-related training and the PPCL/PSL do not replace chemical-agent protection, safety instructions or coordination between employers.
Article 16
Official BOE legal relationships
This record covers the history of the selected occupational safety and health provisions. The official analysis also provides the relationships affecting other subjects in the legislation.
Official BOE legal relationships