Site-related airborne biological hazard and seasonal variations in two wastewater treatment plants

Fracchia, Letizia; Pietronave, Stefano; Rinaldi, Maurizio; Martinotti, Maria Giovanna

doi:10.1016/j.watres.2006.03.016

Cited by 80 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Generally, the distribution of the airborne bacterial levels in the area of the studied waste water treatment plants agrees well with the existing knowledge (Sánchez-Monedero et al 2008;Fracchia et al 2006). In particular, we confirmed that splashing and bubble bursting that occur as a result of forced aeration in activated sludge processes release large amount of bacteria into the air.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Among the microorganism present in the air at the areas of wastewater treatment plants and in their vicinity were found both saprophytes and pathogens of the genera Bacillus, Clostridium, Enterobacter, Escherichia, Klebsiella, Mycobacterium, Pseudomonas, Serratia, Staphylococcus, Salmonella, and such fungi as Alternaria, Cladosporium, Penicillium, Aspergillus (Wlazło et al 2002;Fracchia et al 2006;Korzeniewska et al 2009). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characteristics of airborne bacteria and fungi in some Polish wastewater treatment plants

Kowalski

Wolany

Pastuszka

et al. 2017

Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol.

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The aim of this study was to characterize both the viable airborne bacteria and fungi collected in different types of wastewater treatment plants in Poland. Bacterial and fungal aerosols in five different wastewater treatment plants in Poland were studied, including the pioneering antibiotic resistance testing of airborne bacteria. Concentration level was measured using the six-stage Andersen impactor. After incubation, bioaerosol particles captured on nutrient media on Petri dishes were quantitatively evaluated and qualitatively identified. It was found that the concentration levels of both airborne bacteria and fungi ranged from 10 2 to 10 3 colony-forming units/m 3 , in all stages of the wastewater treatment plants. The patterns of size distributions of airborne bacteria and fungi were very similar, showing dominant peaks typically in the size range between 3.3 and 4.7 lm. The majority fraction of small bacterial and fungal particles (less than 4.7 lm) in the studied areas indicates that the bioaerosol is relatively fresh, and mostly of local origin. The Gram-positive cocci and nonsporing Gram-positive rods were the dominating forms in the studied wastewater treatment plants environment. The existing differences in the concentration levels between sampling sites enabled identification of the main bioaerosol sources. The highest concentration of bacterial aerosol appeared in sections, where activated sludge postprocessing and mechanical purifying are conducted. The most frequently occurring species in the sampled bacterial aerosol were Gram-positive cocci and nonsporing Grampositive rods. Multi-antibiotic resistance testing showed that among the isolated airborne bacteria, the most antibiotic-resistant features were present among Bacillus species (especially Bacillus mycoides).

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characteristics of airborne bacteria and fungi in some Polish wastewater treatment plants

Kowalski

Wolany

Pastuszka

et al. 2017

Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The occurrence and survival of S. aureus in wastewater environments have not been well studied, but the indication from both cultivation and PCR is that S. aureus occurs at low levels in municipal wastewaters and surface waters ( [Schwartz et al, 2003], [Savichtcheva et al, 2007] and [Shannon et al, 2007]). In the present study S. aureus was detected to almost the same extent in OUT as well as IN (Table 2), and other groups have been able to isolate S. aureus from microbial aerosols in WWTPs (Fracchia et al, 2006). Furthermore, among residents living in proximity to areas fertilised with treated wastewater, the prevalence of S. aureus infections was 25 times higher than infections among hospitalised patients (Lewis et al, 2002).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 70%

A seasonal study of the mecA gene and Staphylococcus aureus including methicillin-resistant S. aureus in a municipal wastewater treatment plant

et al. 2009

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The spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), in which the mecA gene mediates resistance, threatens the treatment of staphylococcal diseases. The aims were to determine the effect of wastewater treatment processes on mecA gene concentrations, and the prevalence of S. aureus and MRSA over time. To achieve this a municipal wastewater treatment plant was investigated for the mecA gene, S. aureus and MRSA, using real-time PCR assays. Water samples were collected monthly for one year, at eight sites in the plant, reflecting different aspects of the treatment process. The mecA gene and S. aureus could be detected throughout the year at all sampling sites. MRSA could also be detected, but mainly in the early treatment steps. The presence of MRSA was verified through cultivation from inlet water. The concentration of the mecA gene varied between months and sampling sites, but no obvious seasonal variation could be determined. The wastewater treatment process reduced the mecA gene concentration in most months. Taken together our results show that the mecA gene, S. aureus and MRSA occur over the year at all sites investigated.

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“…A research showed that oxidation ditch produced the highest microbe aerosol in domestic WWTP in China [14]. Like the previous research, shows that the highest mesophilic bacteria are produced in trickling filter unit in domestic WWTP in Italy [15]. Similarly, one hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia, shows that hospital's WWTP can also be the source of bioaerosol pollution, and the highest concentration of bacteria is found in aeration unit (Integrated WWTP 1) and equalization unit (Integrated WWTP 2), while the highest concentration of fungi is found in equalization unit (Integrated WWTP 1) and in sedimentation unit (Integrated WWTP 2) [16].…”

Section: Concentration Of Bioaerosol In the Surrounding Wwtpmentioning

confidence: 61%

Analysis of Microbial Air Quality in the Surrounding Hospital’s Wastewater Treatment Plants in Jakarta, Indonesia

Kristanto

Rosana

2017

MATEC Web Conf.

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Abstract.As hospitals require the usage of various hazardous drugs and chemicals in its daily operation, the often contaminated wastewater of health facilities needs to be processed to comply with the quality standards specified in Regulation of the Governor of DKI Jakarta No. 65/2013. However, wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) can also pollute not only water but also the ambient air of facilities. The objective of this research is to identify airborne bacteria and the concentration of fungi due to the presence of WTP and to analyse the types of bacteria that exist through Gram Staining. Microbial air samples taken using EMS E6 showed that the average concentration of bioaerosol at hospital's WWTP was about 810-1,915 CFU/m 3 for bacteria and 1,450-1,955 CFU/m 3 for fungi. Furthermore, the highest concentration of bacteria and fungi found in the surrounding equalization and aeration tanks was 1,915 CFU/m 3 and 1,955 CFU/m 3 , respectively, which far exceeded the background value of 80 CFU/m 3 for bacteria and 440 CFU/m 3 for fungi. Gram staining of the bacteria found in the air surrounding WWTP showed 94% Gram-negative with the bacteria being pathogenic. Therefore, it is pertinent that further action is taken to prevent bioaerosol from spreading around WWTP by building better ventilation surrounding the plants, indicating the technology of the treatment plant to be used, and enforcing personal safety measures on WWTP's employees.

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Site-related airborne biological hazard and seasonal variations in two wastewater treatment plants

Cited by 80 publications

References 42 publications

Characteristics of airborne bacteria and fungi in some Polish wastewater treatment plants

Characteristics of airborne bacteria and fungi in some Polish wastewater treatment plants

A seasonal study of the mecA gene and Staphylococcus aureus including methicillin-resistant S. aureus in a municipal wastewater treatment plant

Analysis of Microbial Air Quality in the Surrounding Hospital’s Wastewater Treatment Plants in Jakarta, Indonesia

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