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A
number of experts agree in the next century, development of sustainable water
will be a formidable challenge and that a global water crisis is already
occurring. Water is essential for human survival and habitation. The
world’s population lacks adequate access to “safe” water. Contaminated
water kills 5 million people/year, makes 30 million ill worldwide.
Water resources in the U.S. are stressed by population growth and development
influencing both quantity and quality of water. Climate change leading to
droughts and floods exasperate the situation. Management of wastewater,
animal wastes, agricultural runoff and storm waters are impacting fresh waters
as well as coastal waters. This in turn influences the health of the
people using these waters for drinking water, irrigation water, fishing and
recreation.
In 1996, the United States “Safe Drinking Water Act” was reauthorized and
with this reassessment it was recognized that new contaminants will need to be
addressed and have been developed as part of the “Contaminant Candidate
List” (CCL). This includes microorganisms such as Cryptosporidium,
Helicobacter, viruses, cyanobacteria or the toxic algae.
New tools are now available to address water quality and health. For
Cryptosporidium we can use cell culture to study the infectivity and the
distribution of genotypes infecting animals and humans. Enteric viruses which
are often non-cultivatible some associated with severe health risks and can be
examined rapidly using NASBA. Rather then examining just for fecal coliforms we
can genetically match the bacteria to it’s source. Finally through
collaborations such as that between University of Michigan and Michigan State,
microarray DNA technology will guide us toward a better assessment of water
quality and health..
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