Fecal pollution in some groundwater sources may be
intermittent or low. Little data exist regarding the
comparative performance of a large variety of indicator
tests to detect fecal contamination in groundwater
sources tested multiple times, rather than just once or a
few times, and on an equal-volume basis. The proposed
US Environmental Protection Agency Ground Water
Rule specifies the use of either Escherichia coli, enterococci,
or coliphage tests to detect contamination, but it
is not clear if these are the best indicator tests to use.
This study showed that detecting fecal pollution in
some groundwater sources is easy, but in others it is
easier said than done. In addition to using groundwater
vulnerability assessments and well sanitary surveys,
water purveyors need to sample their groundwater
sources often, over an extended period of time, and use
the most reliable monitoring tools available. Data from
this study, although limited, show that fecal pollution
in a well with known contamination was detected most
often by the total coliform bacteria indicator test, followed
by the fecal coliform bacteria test, then the E.
coli and enterococci tests. Further, if method issues can
be resolved, 1-L volumes should be tested rather than
the currently specified 100-mL volumes. Includes 54 references.
| Edition : | Vol. 95 - No. 10 |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 390 KB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 13 |
| Published : | 10/01/2003 |
