Hixon 1 Concentrations and identities of fecal coliform bacteria from ...

Hixon 2
ABSTRACT
Over the centuries humans have impacted many streams and rivers in Florida causing
many of them to become polluted. Fecal coliform bacteria, which live in the guts of warm
blooded animals, are common in polluted streams and rivers and are currently used as indicators
of the presence of human pathogenic microorganisms. There are over 100 tributarites that flow
into the Saint Johns River in Jacksonville Florida that are monitored for fecal coliform bacteria.
According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) if there are more than
800 fecal coliform colony forming units (CFUs) per 100mL, the water is deemed not safe for
human recreation. This paper focuses on descriptive and comparative research at six sites along
the Saint Johns River near Jacksonville University (JU). The fecal coliform bacteria ranged from
1 to 1067 CFUs/100mL, with the highest counts at Jacksonville University. There were no
apparent relationships seen between fecal coliform bacteria CFUs and water temperature,
dissolved oxygen, salinity, and pH. Common fecal coliform bacteria belonging to the genera
Escherichia, Klebsiella, and Citrobacter were identified.
INTRODUCTION
Water quality is a serious issue that affects many U.S. streams and rivers, including the
Saint Johns River in Jacksonville Florida. According to a report by Lui et al. (2010) that assessed
39% of the United States streams and rivers, 19% were found to be impaired, of which 35%
percent were polluted by fecal coliform bacteria. Fecal coliform bacteria are listed as the leading
causes of water quality impairment in rivers and streams and the second leading cause in
estuaries (Liu et al. 2010).