By Dean Seal

Verizon Communications Inc. has reached an agreement with New York Attorney General Letitia James to resolve allegations that it failed to properly monitor building cooling towers in the state.

The attorney general said Thursday that an investigation by her office uncovered at least 225 alleged violations of city and state laws at 45 of the company's New York-based cooling tower locations since 2017, including failures to conduct testing, address positive test results and inspect cooling towers by required deadlines.

Poorly monitored and operated building cooling towers can contribute to the spread of Legionnaires' disease, Ms. James said.

As part of its agreement with the state, Verizon will adopt policies to ensure compliance with anti-Legionnaires' disease laws and pay a $118,000 fine.

"It is essential that companies such as Verizon are taking the necessary actions to avoid the spread of this preventable and lethal disease," Ms. James said in a statement. "This agreement will protect New Yorkers' public health and slow the spread of Legionnaires' disease."

Ms. James' office has been investigating cooling tower owners' compliance with reporting requirements since 2019.

Write to Dean Seal at dean.seal@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 02, 2022 16:34 ET (20:34 GMT)

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