ERP - Environmental Risk Professionals

Legionella Risks in Water Systems

Legionella, a bacterium, can thrive in water-containing systems like air conditioning, water heating and cooling, plumbing, misters, and water features. Poorly maintained systems and inadequate corrosion control or sanitation can result in Legionella growth and dispersal through mist and airborne droplets. Exposure can result in illness, including Legionnaires’ disease, a form of potentially fatal pneumonia.

Mold, Humidity and Moisture Intrusion

Mold and fungi could develop in the buildings on-site due to moisture intrusion or elevated humidity. Third-party bodily injury, property damage, and cleanup claims may result from mold and fungi incidents.

Asbestos-Containing Material

Older buildings may contain asbestos. Asbestos-containing material (ACM) may be present in duct insulation, piping, furnaces, boilers, tanks, and fireproofing insulation. ACM may also be present in ceilings, walls, flooring tile, and mastic. Tort claims may result from accidental disturbance or alleged exposure during renovation, construction, or interior remodeling.

Lead

Lead could be present in paint or pipes. Lead in pipes can get into drinking water, and paint chips and dust from lead-based paint can be ingested. Lead exposure can cause significant bodily injury. Exterior lead-based paint can also leach into the soil around the structure, resulting in cleanup liability.

Maintenance Equipment

Equipment for grounds maintenance, such as mowers, aerators, tractors, and utility vehicles, uses fuels, oils, and hydraulic fluids. Spills and leaks can also occur from a rupture or malfunction of equipment, an accident involving the equipment, or during on-site storage, maintenance, loading, and unloading of fuel and fluids into equipment.

Chemical Handling

Misuse, over-application, improper storage, and spills or leaks of pool treatment chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and insecticides can create cleanup liability and health hazards to third parties. Leaks or spills from improper storage and handling could contaminate drinking water sources or damage ecosystems or aquatic life if the chemicals migrate to surface waters or wetlands.

Storage Tanks

Underground and aboveground storage tanks typically store materials such as petroleum products and chemicals. Leaks or a malfunction of equipment, pumps, valves, and pipes can cause a release of the contents. Spills can also occur during loading and unloading. Improper or no secondary containment can allow contents to leach into the underlying soils and groundwater, collect in run-off, or migrate off-site or into surface waters.

Waste Management and Disposal

Associations retain cradle-to-grave liability for their waste and must determine whether the waste they generate is considered hazardous and requires special disposal or recycling procedures. Improperly segregated and disposed of wastes can result in regulatory fines or lead to cleanup and environmental tort liability. Wastes classified as hazardous or requiring special handling include wastewater, restaurant grease, used oil and antifreeze, lead-acid batteries, fluorescent bulbs, and pesticide waste, which can include leftover spray solutions and excess pesticides.

Pre-existing Contamination

Existing soil or groundwater contamination may be present on, under, or adjacent to a property from historic on-site operations or migrating on-site from adjacent properties. Contamination can result in vapor intrusion and potential bodily injury to residents. Homeowners or condo associations can incur cleanup and third-party liability for pre-existing conditions.

On-site cleanup of new and pre-existing pollution conditions

Off-site cleanup of new and pre-existing pollution conditions

Third-party claims for bodily injury and property damage

Third-party claims for cleanup

Both sudden and gradual pollution conditions

Aboveground and underground storage tanks

Non-owned disposal sites

Business interruption resulting from pollution conditions

First and third-party transportation pollution liability

Mold, bacteria, viruses, legionella, and more

Loading and unloading

Defense of third-party claims

Illicit abandonment

Natural resource damage

Claims Scenarios & Examples

An HOA violated the Clean Water Act and was fined $150,000 for damaging wetlands after dredging a marina access channel and discharging the fill material into the water without a permit. In addition to the fine, the HOA was ordered to restore and enhance more than 7 acres of wetlands.

A resident sued their HOA under the Clean Water Act (CWA), alleging the HOA failed to maintain a biofilter installed in the 1980s to protect the lake and shorelines from pollution run-off resulting from the neighborhood’s construction. The court ruled that the biofilter has been a source of pollution, and the HOA can be held liable. The case is still ongoing. CWA fines carry a maximum penalty of $64,619 per day for each violation.

A retired woman sued her HOA after becoming ill with Legionnaires’ disease after using the community center’s showers following a yoga class. She alleged negligence in the maintenance of the community center’s facilities. Test results revealed that the community center’s water systems harbored Legionella bacteria, likely proliferating in the warm, stagnant waters of the showers and plumbing infrastructure. The woman, who spent weeks in the hospital resulting from her illness, was awarded over $250,000, which was paid by the HOA’s insurance carrier.

A young family living in a condominium complex began to feel sick. The father felt ill, the three-year-old son got pneumonia, and the mother and one-year-old son were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ Disease. Around that time, the condo association had notified residents that Legionella bacteria had been discovered in the cooling tower, and they were shutting down the condominium complex’s HVAC units. The young family moved and sued the association for negligence, seeking $850,000 for damages.

After experiencing health issues from toxic mold in their condominium units, three families sued the homeowners association for failing to fix the leaky pipes. They settled for $545,000.

A family purchased a condominium unit as a vacation home. A major sewage backup occurred, spilling sewage into rooms and onto the unit’s floor. The unit was uninhabitable after this. The association hired a restoration company to perform emergency cleanup and water extraction, but the family was not satisfied with the cleanup. The family sued the condominium association for failure to maintain and repair the common area plumbing that caused the backup and failure to appropriately remediate their unit. The association was liable, and the family was awarded over $30,000.

A community association regularly used phosphorus-rich fertilizer to maintain the community lawns. During a heavy rainstorm, some phosphorus migrated into a pond on the next-door property, resulting in algae bloom and harming the organisms in the pond. Property damage and cleanup surpassed $55,000.

After a series of roof leaks in her condo unit, a woman started to experience health issues. When investigated, it was found that the chronic water damage in her unit had led to mold growth behind the walls. The woman sued the association responsible for the roof maintenance to remediate the mold and water damage in her unit. She recovered $350,000.

A condominium association hired a carpenter to renovate a common area of the building. The carpenter was unaware that the mastic in the flooring contained asbestos. During the work, asbestos fibers were released around the common hallways and stairways and spread in the HVAC system to some units. Due to the release, a comprehensive abatement of the building was needed to ensure it was all cleaned up. The carpenter’s general liability policy had an asbestos exclusion, and they did not have the financial resources to pay for the cleanup. The condominium association had to pay the cleanup costs.

A condominium resident sued the condo association after being diagnosed with Legionnaires’ Disease. According to the lawsuit, the man used the spa facilities, where he was allegedly exposed to Legionella bacteria in the spray and mist. Inspections of the facility found that the condo association was not performing regular spa maintenance. The flow meter was stuck, so the spa was not adequately chlorinated.

A man who lived in a condominium complex was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder exacerbated by the condo association’s pesticides sprayed on the landscaping. The man requested several times that the association stop spraying the pesticides, but it refused to change its policies. Due to the severe reaction he claimed to have had to the toxin, they filed a bodily injury lawsuit against the association seeking monetary damages and civil penalties.

An association excavated an area to repair piping when an unknown underground storage tank was found. An investigation determined that oil had leaked from the tank and had contaminated soil and groundwater on the site. They also found that the contamination had migrated to the neighboring property. Investigating the extent of the contamination cost over $30,000, and the cleanup costs surpassed $175,000.

Property Types

Homeowner & Condominium Associations

Environmental Exposures May Include: