Delivering healthy water: building the science-policy interface to protect bathing water quality

提供健康水：建立科学与政策界面以保护沐浴水质

• 批准号: NE/I022191/1
• 负责人: David Oliver
• 金额: $ 12.44万
• 依托单位: University of Stirling
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2011 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=NE%2FI022191%2F1
• 关键词: Delivering; healthy; water; building; science

The quality of UK bathing waters is assessed by enumerating bacteria known as faecal indicator organisms (FIOs) throughout the bathing season. Waters used to harvest shellfish are monitored for FIOs too. E. coli is a common FIO derived from the gut of warm blooded animals and is harmless, but its detection in environmental samples or shellfish flesh indicates the potential for the presence of disease causing microbes derived from faecal material. Their detection at designated bathing and shellfish harvesting waters at levels above standards specified within EU directives can lead to beach closures or shellfish stocks being classed as unfit for human consumption and can therefore have serious implications for local economies and social activity as well as human health. From 2012 the number of UK beaches of poor microbiological status is set to rise because of the introduction of more stringent standards associated with the revised Bathing Waters Directive in Europe. Meeting these new standards and avoiding infraction (and therefore economic consequences) will be a challenge. However, parallel debates over the suitability of traditional versus novel quantification methods add an extra layer of complexity for regulators to grapple with. Recently the US has begun to consider molecular-based enumeration tools as an alternative to 'tried and tested' albeit slower methods that rely on our ability to grow bacteria. This is likely to lead to increased pressure in the UK to consider a methodological shift too. However, with the emergence of rapid novel approaches come difficult decisions for how best to translate technological innovation into up-to-date regulation. As cutting edge science delivers new and more efficient technologies for microbial detection and enumeration there comes a requirement for balanced evaluation of such approaches with regard to their operational utility given their associated limitations and uncertainties at current time. For example, while molecular approaches provide rapid bacterial counts they have yet to be properly evaluated for regulatory monitoring purposes and there is much uncertainty regarding their precision and accuracy for microbial enumeration in the bathing zone. Without careful evaluation the same innovative science could actually bring about negative societal and economic impacts if implemented in haste due to poor understanding of how new and emerging techniques map onto existing health-related water quality standards. With more stringent standards drawing ever closer it is critical that science users and providers do not gamble with a methodological transition that could add further complications to the UK's compliance record.A Working Group (WG) concerned with emerging quantitative molecular tools for microbial water quality compliance parameters has been formed in response to this challenge. The WG brings together experts from across academic, regulatory and stakeholder organisations to build a knowledge-sharing community. Using a workshop series, and drawing on wider national and international expertise, the WG will build an agreed evidence base to underpin and guide future decision-making in the short to medium term. Molecular tools will be interrogated via three themed workshops focusing on (i) the underlying science and technology of molecular tools; (ii) their potential to inform catchment management; and (iii) their economic impact. Members of the WG are already aligned to inform the World Health Organisation (which has been responsible for the development of revisions to the Bathing Water Directive for Europe) of outputs and recommendations from the project. Protecting public health is a priority. By ensuring that the science underpinning regulation and management of microbial water quality is transparent and thoroughly evaluated we can guarantee that the necessary steps are taken to benefit public health through reduced microbial risk from bathing and shellfish consumption.

英国沐浴水的质量是通过在整个沐浴季节对被称为粪便指示生物 (FIO) 的细菌进行计数来评估的。用于捕捞贝类的水域也受到 FIO 的监测。大肠杆菌是一种常见的 FIO，源自温血动物的肠道，无害，但在环境样本或贝类肉中检测到它表明可能存在源自粪便的致病微生物。在指定的沐浴和贝类捕捞水域中检测到它们的含量高于欧盟指令规定的标准，可能会导致海滩关闭或贝类资源被归类为不适合人类食用，因此可能对当地经济和社会活动以及人类健康产生严重影响。自 2012 年起，由于欧洲修订后的沐浴水域指令引入了更严格的标准，英国微生物状况较差的海滩数量将会增加。满足这些新标准并避免违规（从而避免经济后果）将是一项挑战。然而，关于传统量化方法与新颖量化方法的适用性的并行争论为监管机构增加了一层额外的复杂性。最近，美国开始考虑使用基于分子的计数工具来替代“经过试验和测试”的方法，尽管这种方法速度较慢，依赖于我们培养细菌的能力。这可能会导致英国面临更大的压力，要求其也考虑改变方法。然而，随着快速新颖方法的出现，如何最好地将技术创新转化为最新的监管也面临着艰难的决定。随着尖端科学为微生物检测和计数提供了新的、更有效的技术，考虑到当前相关的局限性和不确定性，需要对这些方法的操作效用进行平衡评估。例如，虽然分子方法可以提供快速的细菌计数，但它们尚未针对监管监测目的进行适当的评估，并且其在沐浴区微生物计数的精度和准确性方面存在很大的不确定性。如果不仔细评估，由于对新兴技术如何映射到现有的健康相关水质标准缺乏了解，如果仓促实施，同样的创新科学实际上可能会带来负面的社会和经济影响。随着更严格的标准日益临近，科学用户和提供者不要冒险进行方法转变，这可能会给英国的合规记录带来进一步的复杂性。一个工作组 (WG) 关注微生物水质合规性的新兴定量分子工具参数的形成是为了应对这一挑战。该工作组汇集了来自学术、监管和利益相关者组织的专家，以建立一个知识共享社区。通过一系列研讨会，并利用更广泛的国内和国际专业知识，工作组将建立一个商定的证据基础，以支持和指导未来的中短期决策。分子工具将通过三个主题研讨会进行探讨，重点关注（i）分子工具的基础科学和技术； (ii) 它们为流域管理提供信息的潜力； (iii) 其经济影响。工作组成员已准备好向世界卫生组织（该组织负责制定欧洲沐浴水指令修订版）通报该项目的成果和建议。保护公众健康是当务之急。通过确保微生物水质监管和管理的科学基础是透明的和彻底的评估，我们可以保证采取必要的措施，通过减少沐浴和贝类消费带来的微生物风险来造福公众健康。

项目成果

Molecular tools for bathing water assessment in Europe: Balancing social science research with a rapidly developing environmental science evidence-base.

• DOI: 10.1007/s13280-015-0698-9
• 发表时间: 2016-02
• 期刊: Ambio
• 影响因子: 6.5
• 作者: Oliver DM;Hanley ND;van Niekerk M;Kay D;Heathwaite AL;Rabinovici SJ;Kinzelman JL;Fleming LE;Porter J;Shaikh S;Fish R;Chilton S;Hewitt J;Connolly E;Cummins A;Glenk K;McPhail C;McRory E;McVittie A;Giles A;Roberts S;Simpson K;Tinch D;Thairs T;Avery LM;Vinten AJ;Watts BD;Quilliam RS
• 通讯作者: Quilliam RS