By design, recirculating aerated water cascades through cooling towers to extract unwanted heat to the atmosphere. When foaming occurs, it can have negative impacts on both the cooling tower system and the surrounding environment. Foaming can not only confuse sensors and damage nearby equipment and car paint, it can also serve as a carrier for Legionella bacteria. Cooling water can foam due to a multitude of reasons. In some cases, it is even the result of a combination of factors. Some reasons cooling tower foaming may occur include: