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Evaluation of Factors Influencing the Environmental Spread of Pathogens by Wastewater Treatment Plants

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Abstract

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), usually designed to remove organic pollutants and nutrients, are often poorly equipped to handle pathogens. The present study investigated the multiple barriers provided by WWTPs to understand their role in spreading pathogenic bacteria into the environment. Three types of WWTPs (hospital, domestic, and mixed) differing in the source of raw influent, operating parameters, and reactor configuration (biological and tertiary treatment processes) were compared for the presence of fecal indicators and pathogenic bacteria discharged in their treated effluents. The plate-count technique was used for bacterial enumeration on selective agar. The microbial quality of the treated effluent was observed to be strongly influenced by characteristics inherent to a WWTP rather than depending on the characteristics of the raw influent. Among the different configurations studied, membrane bioreactor (MBR) treatment followed by chlorine disinfection provided an effluent of the highest quality (100% bacterial removal rates) followed by moving bed bioreactor (MBBR) combined with UV disinfection. MBR treatment greatly increased the efficiency of chlorine disinfection. Higher total suspended solids (TSS) removal corresponded to higher bacterial removal rates. Tertiary treatment proved to be an important determinant of the microbial quality of the final effluent. A great heterogeneity was observed in the removal rates of different bacterial groups with different treatment processes. The highest removal was observed in the case of indicators and least in the case of emerging pathogens like Escherichia coliO157: H7 indicating a lack of correlation between traditional indicators and emerging pathogens and also the inefficiency of the current wastewater treatment technologies in dealing with emerging pathogens.

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Acknowledgments

Authors thank Head, Department of Zoology and CAS, Department of Zoology for providing support and encouragement for this study. Authors like to extend a special thanks to SDMH administration, Jaipur Development Authority (JDA), and Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) for providing access to SDMH, Jawahar Circle and Delawas treatment plants respectively.

Funding

This research was financially supported by the University Grants Commission (UGC) under CSIR-UGC NET SRF scheme (file no. 41-4/NET/RES/JRF-1413/391). The funding source had no involvement in the study design, in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, in the writing of the report, and the decision to submit the article for publication.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental, Molecular, Microbiology (EMM) Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur, Rajasthan, 302004, India

    Pallavi Bhatt, Nupur Mathur & Anuradha Singh

  2. Commissionerate College Education, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

    Hemant Pareek

  3. Faculty of Science, IIS University, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

    Pradeep Bhatnagar

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  1. Pallavi Bhatt
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  2. Nupur Mathur
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Correspondence to Pallavi Bhatt.

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Bhatt, P., Mathur, N., Singh, A. et al. Evaluation of Factors Influencing the Environmental Spread of Pathogens by Wastewater Treatment Plants. Water Air Soil Pollut 231, 440 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-020-04807-4

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