Are people working in horticulture or greenhouse farming at a heightened risk for contamination?
Gardeners are not at a heightened risk for Legionnaire’s disease. The Health Care Inspection verified this from Legionella contamination reports from the last five years. The numbers show that no occupational groups are at a heightened risk. Even though legionnaire’s disease is not always properly diagnosed, a heightened risk for certain occupational groups would not go unnoticed in the Inspection’s reports. Therefore it is very unlikely that casualties in the horticulture business are going unnoticed. Data from the Stigas Arbo service, the rural Health and Safety executive for agriculture, do not show a bigger risk either. In greenhouse gardening, rainwater basins are used. This water is used for spraying the plants. The temperature of the water usually stays under 20 degrees Celsius in this climate. The temperature might only exceed 20 degrees Celsius in extremely hot weather conditions. Since Legionella bacteria only multiply in water between 25 and 55 degrees, the bacteria usually
