In Apuseni Mountains (North-Western Romania), many of the inhabitants live in rural communities with limited or no access to the centralized and controlled water supply. This study assesses the microbiological quality of six karst spring waters from Bihor County used by rural communities as drinking water sources. Twenty-four water samples collected in January, April, June, and November 2021 were analyzed for E. coli, total coliforms, intestinal enterococci, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and heterotrophic plate count at 37 and 22°C. Standard microbiological methods based on the membrane filter technique or pour plate method were used for the microbiological characterization of the spring waters. The study revealed that the karst springs from the studied area present microbiological contamination. The microbiological parameters for five out of the six studied spring waters exceeded the maximum limits allowed by the 98/83/EC Directive. Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment estimated the risk of gastrointestinal illness for both adults and children due to the enteropathogenic E. coli contamination. According to the health risk evaluation model, the risk of infection/day and the risk of infection/year were high, with the maximum values of 0.24 and 1.00, respectively. The probability of illness caused by E. coli contamination of water ranged between 0.09 and 0.35 for five out of six groundwater sources. The local communities using the contaminated springs are exposed to daily and accumulated health threats. Therefore, preventive measures accompanied by continuous monitoring are necessary mainly for those water sources that are critical drinking water sources for the rural communities.
Karst springs are an essential source of drinking water in rural communities in North-Western Romania. Due to the fractured dolomite aquifers, dolines, or blind valleys, these springs are vulnerable to contamination by human and zoonotic pathogens. In this study, we assessed the human health risk associated with the contamination of six springs’ water with gastrointestinal pathogens. The data on the occurrence of E. coli and estimated Campylobacter and Rotavirus for a year of monitoring from twenty-four samples were inputted into a Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA) model (Machdar et al. 2013). The QMRA was conducted following steps: hazard identification, dose-response assessment, exposure assessment, and risk characterization (Haas C N et al. 2014; World Health Organization 2016). In order to predict the total cases of illnesses for the spring water consumers, the probability of infection and illness was calculated for adults and children. Results have shown that the estimated probability of infection for enteropathogenic E. coli, Campylobacter, and Rotavirus ranged between 1.1 × 10-3 and 1.0 × 100, values much higher than the acceptable limit of 10-4 infections/person/year established by WHO (2016). The estimated probability of illness due to the pathogenic E. coli and Campylobacter infection was high, with values between 8.8 × 10-2 and 3.5 × 10-1 for five out of six groundwater sources. The estimated probability of illness due to the Rotavirus infection ranged between 4.0 × 10-4 and 6.4 × 10-2 for both adults and children. The finding suggests that consuming contaminated spring water could lead to severe acute, chronic, or sometimes fatal health consequences for the locals. This study provides valuable QMRA information on the contaminated karst groundwater, with important implications for human health and groundwater resources management.
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