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Quero GM, Guicciardi S, Penna P, Catenacci G, Brandinelli M, Bolognini L, Luna GM. Increasing trends in faecal pollution revealed over a decade in the central Adriatic Sea (Italy). WATER RESEARCH 2024; 262:122083. [PMID: 39067273 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.122083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2024] [Revised: 07/08/2024] [Accepted: 07/10/2024] [Indexed: 07/30/2024]
Abstract
Faecal contamination of the coastal sea poses widespread hazard to human and environmental health and is predicted to rise in response to global change and human pressure. For better management and risk reduction it is thus imperative to clarify and predict trends of faecal pollution over spatial and temporal scales, and to assess links with climate and other variables. Here, we investigated the spatio-temporal variation in the Faecal Indicator Bacteria (FIB) Escherichia coli and enterococci, over a time frame spanning 11 years (2011-2021) along a coastal area covering approximately 40 km and 59 bathing sites in the Marche region (Adriatic Sea, Italy), characterized by intense beach tourism, high riverine inputs, resident population, maritime traffic and industrial activities. Our analysis, that considers 5,183 measurements during the bathing season (April to October), shows that FIB abundance varied significantly among years. A general, although not significant, increase over time of both FIB was observed, mainly due to a general reduction of structural zeros (i.e., zeros originated from the actual absence of the response variable) over the examined time period. FIB abundances displayed their maxima and minima in different years according to the municipality, with overall peaks recorded in different months (May-June or September), whereas the lowest values were always observed in October. FIB levels were not significantly related neither to rainfalls nor to river discharge, but the activation of combined sewer overflows (CSOs), typically occurring after intense rainfall events, appeared as a necessary condition for the high faecal contamination levels. Considering climate change scenarios predicting significant increases in extreme weather events, our findings support the usefulness of analysing long-term trends to identify pollution sources, and the prioritization of control strategies to better manage the release of microbial pollutants from combined sewer overflows in coastal waters to reduce human risks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grazia Marina Quero
- Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnologies, National Research Council (CNR-IRBIM), Ancona, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo 90133, Italy
| | - Stefano Guicciardi
- Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnologies, National Research Council (CNR-IRBIM), Ancona, Italy
| | - Pierluigi Penna
- Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnologies, National Research Council (CNR-IRBIM), Ancona, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Gian Marco Luna
- Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnologies, National Research Council (CNR-IRBIM), Ancona, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo 90133, Italy.
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You S, Huang X, Xing L, Lesperance M, LeBlanc C, Moccia LP, Mercier V, Shao X, Pan Y, Zhang X. Dynamics of fecal coliform bacteria along Canada's coast. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2023; 189:114712. [PMID: 36827773 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.114712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2022] [Revised: 01/15/2023] [Accepted: 02/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
The vast coastline provides Canada with a flourishing seafood industry including bivalve shellfish production. To sustain a healthy bivalve molluscan shellfish production, the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program was established to monitor the health of shellfish harvesting habitats, and fecal coliform bacteria data have been collected at nearly 15,000 marine sample sites across six coastal provinces in Canada since 1979. We applied Functional Principal Component Analysis and subsequent correlation analyses to find annual variation patterns of bacteria levels at sites in each province. The overall magnitude and the seasonality of fecal contamination were modelled by functional principal component one and two, respectively. The amplitude was related to human and warm-blooded animal activities; the seasonality was strongly correlated with river discharge driven by precipitation and snow melt in British Columbia, but such correlation in provinces along the Atlantic coast could not be properly evaluated due to lack of data during winter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuai You
- University of Victoria, 3800 Finnerty Road, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada.
| | - Xiaolin Huang
- University of Victoria, 3800 Finnerty Road, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada.
| | - Li Xing
- University of Saskatchewan, 105 Administration Place, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5A2, Canada.
| | - Mary Lesperance
- University of Victoria, 3800 Finnerty Road, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada.
| | - Charles LeBlanc
- Shellfish Water Classification Program - Atlantic Region, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Government of Canada, 443 University Ave., Moncton, NB E1A 3E9, Canada.
| | - L Paul Moccia
- Shellfish Water Classification Program - Pacific Region, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Government of Canada, 2645 Dollarton Highway, Vancouver, BC V7H 1B1, Canada.
| | - Vincent Mercier
- National Coordination, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Government of Canada, 443 University Ave., Moncton, NB E1A 3E9, Canada.
| | - Xiaojian Shao
- Digital Technologies Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6, Canada.
| | - Youlian Pan
- Digital Technologies Research Centre, National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa, ON K1A 0R6, Canada.
| | - Xuekui Zhang
- University of Victoria, 3800 Finnerty Road, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada.
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González-Fernández A, Symonds EM, Gallard-Gongora JF, Mull B, Lukasik JO, Rivera Navarro P, Badilla Aguilar A, Peraud J, Mora Alvarado D, Cantor A, Breitbart M, Cairns MR, Harwood VJ. Risk of Gastroenteritis from Swimming at a Wastewater-Impacted Tropical Beach Varies across Localized Scales. Appl Environ Microbiol 2023; 89:e0103322. [PMID: 36847564 PMCID: PMC10057883 DOI: 10.1128/aem.01033-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2022] [Accepted: 01/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Population growth and changing climate are expected to increase human exposure to pathogens in tropical coastal waters. We examined microbiological water quality in three rivers within 2.3 km of each other that impact a Costa Rican beach and in the ocean outside their plumes during the rainy and dry seasons. We performed quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) to predict the risk of gastroenteritis associated with swimming and the amount of pathogen reduction needed to achieve safe conditions. Recreational water quality criteria based on enterococci were exceeded in >90% of river samples but in only 13% of ocean samples. Multivariate analysis grouped microbial observations by subwatershed and season in river samples but only by subwatershed in the ocean. The modeled median risk from all pathogens in river samples was between 0.345 and 0.577, 10-fold above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) benchmark of 0.036 (36 illnesses/1,000 swimmers). Norovirus genogroup I (NoVGI) contributed most to risk, but adenoviruses raised risk above the threshold in the two most urban subwatersheds. The risk was greater in the dry compared to the rainy season, due largely to the greater frequency of NoVGI detection (100% versus 41%). Viral log10 reduction needed to ensure safe swimming conditions varied by subwatershed and season and was greatest in the dry season (3.8 to 4.1 dry; 2.7 to 3.2 rainy). QMRA that accounts for seasonal and local variability of water quality contributes to understanding the complex influences of hydrology, land use, and environment on human health risk in tropical coastal areas and can contribute to improved beach management. IMPORTANCE This holistic investigation of sanitary water quality at a Costa Rican beach assessed microbial source tracking (MST) marker genes, pathogens, and indicators of sewage. Such studies are still rare in tropical climates. Quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) found that rivers impacting the beach consistently exceeded the U.S. EPA risk threshold for gastroenteritis of 36/1,000 swimmers. The study improves upon many QMRA studies by measuring specific pathogens, rather than relying on surrogates (indicator organisms or MST markers) or estimating pathogen concentrations from the literature. By analyzing microbial levels and estimating the risk of gastrointestinal illness in each river, we were able to discern differences in pathogen levels and human health risks even though all rivers were highly polluted by wastewater and were located less than 2.5 km from one another. This variability on a localized scale has not, to our knowledge, previously been demonstrated.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Erin M. Symonds
- College of Marine Science, University of South Florida, Saint Petersburg, Florida, USA
- Department of Anthropology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas, USA
| | | | - Bonnie Mull
- BCS Laboratories, Inc., Gainesville, Florida, USA
| | | | - Pablo Rivera Navarro
- Laboratorio Nacional de Aguas, Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados, Tres Ríos, Cartago, Costa Rica
| | - Andrei Badilla Aguilar
- Laboratorio Nacional de Aguas, Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados, Tres Ríos, Cartago, Costa Rica
| | - Jayme Peraud
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
| | - Darner Mora Alvarado
- Laboratorio Nacional de Aguas, Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados, Tres Ríos, Cartago, Costa Rica
| | - Allison Cantor
- Department of Anthropology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas, USA
| | - Mya Breitbart
- College of Marine Science, University of South Florida, Saint Petersburg, Florida, USA
| | - Maryann R. Cairns
- Department of Anthropology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas, USA
| | - Valerie J. Harwood
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
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Tomenchok LE, Abdool-Ghany AA, Elmir SM, Gidley ML, Sinigalliano CD, Solo-Gabriele HM. Trends in regional enterococci levels at marine beaches and correlations with environmental, global oceanic changes, community populations, and wastewater infrastructure. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 793:148641. [PMID: 34328980 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2021] [Revised: 06/19/2021] [Accepted: 06/20/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
An increase in the number of advisories issued for recreational beaches across south Florida (due to the fecal indicator bacteria, enterococci) has been observed in recent years. To evaluate the possible reasons for this increase, we reviewed weekly monitoring data for 18 beaches in Miami-Dade County, Florida, for the years 2000-2019. Our objective was to evaluate this dataset for trends in enterococci levels and correlations with various factors that might have influenced enterococci levels at these beaches. For statistical analyses, we divided the 20-year period of record into 5-year increments (2000-2004, 2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2015-2019). The Wilcoxon rank sum test was used to identify statistically significant differences between the geometric mean of different periods. When all 18 beaches were collectively considered, a significant increase (p = 0.03) in enterococci was observed during 2015-2019, compared to the prior 15-year period of record. To better understand the potential causes for this increase, correlations were evaluated with environmental parameters (rainfall, air temperature, and water temperature), global oceanic changes (sea level and Sargassum), community populations (county population estimates and beach visitation numbers), and wastewater infrastructure (sewage effluent flow rates to ocean outfalls and deep well injection). In relation to the enterococci geometric mean, the correlation with Sargassum was statistically significant at a 95% confidence interval (p = 0.035). Population (p = 0.078), air temperature (p = 0.092), and sea level (p = 0.098) were statistically significant at 90% confidence intervals. Rainfall, water temperature, beach visitation numbers, and sewage effluent flow rates via deep well injection had positive correlations but were not significant factors. Sewage effluent flow rates to ocean outfalls had a negative correlation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara E Tomenchok
- Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA
| | - Afeefa A Abdool-Ghany
- Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA
| | - Samir M Elmir
- Miami-Dade County Health Department, 1725 NW 167 Street, Miami, FL 33056, USA
| | - Maribeth L Gidley
- University of Miami, Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS), Miami, FL 33149, USA; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Christopher D Sinigalliano
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), Miami, FL 33149, USA
| | - Helena M Solo-Gabriele
- Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA.
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