Methods of detecting pathogens in drinking water relying on the presence of
bacterial indicators such as Escherichia coli may be used to infer the presence of fecal
contamination and assist in the development of source water protection strategies. However,
although biochemical-based methods of identification can speciate organisms, they cannot
provide the level of discrimination required for tracking potential sources of contamination.
Elevated coliform and E. coli levels at a drinking water reservoir indicated deterioration
of source water quality. The reservoir may be impacted during this period by non-point sources
of pollution, including creek run-off from undeveloped forest and agricultural areas, as well as
by various domestic animals and wildlife; large populations of gulls frequently gathered on the
reservoir and cattle grazed in some of the surrounding areas. The objective of this study was to
use molecular-based methods of bacterial fingerprinting to identify the strains of E. coli present
in a drinking water reservoir, and determine the likely sources of contamination. Molecular
methods of source tracking offer a degree of discrimination that can identify organisms to the
isolate level, and can provide a powerful tool to be used in the development of source water
protection strategies.
Includes 11 references, tables, figures.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 490 KB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 11 |
| Published : | 11/01/2002 |
