Japan Geoscience Union Meeting 2015

Presentation information

Oral

Symbol A (Atmospheric and Hydrospheric Sciences) » A-HW Hydrology & Water Environment

[A-HW25] Groundwater and environmental geology in urban areas

Wed. May 27, 2015 2:15 PM - 4:00 PM 101B (1F)

Convener:*Masaya Yasuhara(Geological Survey of Japan, AIST), Takeshi Hayashi(Faculty of Education and Human Studies, Akita University), Motoyuki Asada(Shimizu Corporation), Satoshi Takizawa(Department of Urban Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, the University of Tokyo), Hiroaki SUZUKI(Strategic Technology Development Dept. Research & Development Center, Nippon Koei Co., Ltd.), Kei Nishida(Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Medicine and Engineering, the University of Yamanashi), Chair:Kei Nishida(Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Medicine and Engineering, the University of Yamanashi), Masaya Yasuhara(Geological Survey of Japan, AIST)

2:15 PM - 2:35 PM

[AHW25-01] Occurrence of health-related water microorganisms in groundwater of the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

*Eiji HARAMOTO1 (1.University of Yamanashi)

Keywords:Health-related water microorganism, Microbial water quality indicator, Microbial source tracking

Waterborne diseases are one of the most serious public health concerns in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal; however, the occurrence of waterborne pathogens (viruses, protozoa, and pathogenic bacteria) as well as their indicator microorganisms in aquatic environments of the valley has not yet fully understood.
Through the Global COE program entitled 'Evolution of Research and Education on Integrated River Basin Management in Asian Region' and the Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) program entitled 'Hydro-microbiological Approach for Water Security in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal', we have been trying to determine the occurrence of health-related water microorganisms in water samples of the Kathmandu Valley. Examples of our findings are as follows: (1) Levels of contamination of health-related water microorganisms in groundwater are quite different depending on types of wells; (2) Groundwater is contaminated with animal feces as well as human feces; (3) Waterborne pathogens are frequently detected even in Escherichia coli- and/or total coliform-negative samples, indicating that they are unsuitable indicators of pathogen contamination of groundwater.
Some of the results obtained to date in the projects will be presented.