Fig. 2: Stream system overburdened with sediment. This sediment has an extremely high E. coli count associated with it making our ability to measure where the sediment has originated from<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nE. coli<\/em> may be a better expression of sedimentation than any other freshwater problem. Arguably, billions of dollars are spent worldwide to improve water quality and lower E. coli<\/em> to acceptable levels.<\/p>\nStream restoration is ongoing and best management practices are another industry selling stream improvements. What if the system is so bogged down with legacy sediment that all of this effort will not be realised until this sediment is flushed out in the oceans? Are the streams even possible to cleanse as ever more sediment is continually added through land disturbance? How can we decide what is effective if we cannot measure it?<\/p>\n
Perhaps overwhelming concentrations of E. coli <\/em>in streams are telling us we can\u2019t\u2014we have hit a point in time when there is a level of degradation at which improvement is fleeting and won\u2019t be realised for many more generations.<\/p>\nGauging how water is responding to clean up efforts<\/h3>\n Environmental improvements to tackle water pollution are often competing with each other. For example, the overwhelming movement to remove dams to allow rivers to return to a more natural pattern is also unleashing decades of trapped sediment.<\/p>\n
Fencing cattle and land improvements to minimise erosion can be offset by developing farmland into sub-developments. As we work on improvements in one area of the river, it is getting worse somewhere else. The overwhelming sedimentation demonstrates this plague on a healthy stream.<\/p>\n
E. coli<\/em> may be the measure to gauge how the river is responding.<\/p>\nEven molecular techniques are difficult to discern. While Bacteroides<\/em> is a good source indicator, these tests are expensive and do not identify the bacteria multiplying in the sediment as it does not discern between dean and living source genetic material.\u00a0 Hence, you may have strong increases in E. coli<\/em> without any concurrent source identification.<\/p>\nIf the predominant source of bacteria is the river itself, we have lost the ability to monitor for contamination. Rivers need to cleanse themselves of excessive sedimentation to improve these techniques, helping us pinpoint pollutant sources and clean them up.<\/p>\n
Streamlining the water recovery process<\/h3>\n I believe an evolution needs to occur in our use of E. coli<\/em> indicators.<\/p>\nIn highly impacted watersheds, this test demonstrates sedimentation, and excessive readings suggest excessive sedimentation. We can track improvements or flushing by observing the lowering of E. coli <\/em>levels through time. In many instances, rivers just need time to recover.<\/p>\nOnce a river or stream has hit a point of recovery, this test will allow us to pinpoint areas of concern and needed improvement.<\/p>\n
However, this will only occur when the river has improved, and sediment has been flushed through the system.<\/p>\n
This is why this test is so important\u2014it can show the level of improvement over time and then fine tune our restoration efforts.<\/p>\n
It truly is an indicator, and when we expand our thinking toward what it is actually indicating, we can push toward much-needed improvements in water pollution strategies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
E. coli and its contribution to water pollution could help improve detection strategies. Discover more here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":49268,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[596],"tags":[3365,17356,854],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
E. coli as a surrogate for water pollution<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n