The recent implementation of the Revised Bathing Water Directive in the European Union has highlighted the need for development of effective methods to differentiate between sources of faecal contamination. It had previously been shown that amplification of 16S rRNA genes of host-specific Bacteriodales species using the HF183F and CF128F primers could be used as markers for human and bovine faecal contamination in the United States. This paper determined the sensitivity and specificity of these markers in four Atlantic Rim countries (France, Ireland, Portugal and the United Kingdom) to evaluate their usefulness in determining the origin of faecal contamination. It was shown that the HF183F marker displayed high sensitivity (80-100%) and specificity (91-100%), and is reliable as an indication of human faecal contamination. The CF128F marker displayed 100% sensitivity in all four countries. However, strong regional variations in specificity (41-96%) were observed, highlighting the need for local validation before this marker is employed in source tracking of faecal contamination.
This paper presents the first results of a 14 C and optical luminescence dating project on extensive alluvial silt formations in the southern Anti Atlas Mountains in southern Morocco. The silts comprise three members: basal silts, an inter-silt fluvial gravel member and a top silt member and are incised by the rivers. Top silt dates are: 11 340-11 940, 12 670-13 130 cal. yr BP, and 10.6 ± 0.7 ka (OSL). OSL dates for the inter-silt gravels are 29.6 ± 2.0 ka and for the bottom silts is 45.0 ± 3.7 ka. The sediments correlate with Soltanian stratigraphies known elsewhere in Morocco. To cite this article:
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