Water quality control network : proceedings of the meeting held in Ottawa, Canada, 20-24 February 1989

This report reviews the results obtained in a research project sponsored by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). The project involved the development and testing of rapid, inexpensive and technically simple bacteriological water quality tests for laboratory and field use. The presence/absence (P/A), the hydrogen sulphide paper strip, and the coliphage tests were compared to standard tests. The three tests appear to give good results even when incubation is done at ambient temperatures (20-35 degrees Celsius) and not at the standard 35 degrees Celsius. The standard tests for faecal contamination (m-FC, A-1 broth etc.) were found to be of limited use because all require incubation at 44.5 degrees Celsius. The hydrogen sulphide test was found to be the least expensive and easiest to perform. Its modification to a quantitative (MPN) test was recommended to permit classification of water sources. The coliphage test was found to be easy to perform for personnel with some laboratory training. The P/A test was found useful for treated waters where minimal contamination is expected.