Harvesting of stormwater and injecting it into aquifers for storage and recovery during high water demand periods is a promising technology for augmenting conventional water reserves. However, little has been known on how stormwater impacts the biofouling of water distribution infrastructure. This study evaluated the effect on harvested and limestone aquifer treated stormwater on biofilm formation in a pilot distribution pipe network compared to an identical drinking water pipe rig. Coupons made of cement, copper and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe materials were installed to each pipe rig and exposed to stormwater or drinking water. The total cell counts determined by flow cytometry on the pilot rig coupons were in the order of 10⁵ to 10⁷ cells/cm² for both source waters and showed some variation over the duration of the study. The culturable cell counts were somewhat higher for stormwater exposed coupons than for coupons in mains water rig. The total number of thermotolerant coliforms was notably higher on coupons exposed to stormwater than on those exposed to mains water. Considerable differences were observed in the bacterial and eukaryotic communities on coupons made of various materials and exposed to mains water and stormwater using pyrosequencing. Moreover, seasonal variations were observed in community composition and diversity. A number of bacterial and eukaryotic families and genera harbouring potential human pathogens were detected in both mains water and stormwater systems, with larger numbers of genera observed in the latter indicating a potentially increased risk of exposure to pathogens with stormwater. The stormwater system also harboured sulfur reducers, and a greater diversity of iron oxidisers. A number of bacterial genera that contribute to nitrogen cycling were observed in both mains water and stormwater systems. A number of bacteria grazing eukaryotes were detected, indicating that the biofilm communities are quite dynamic and the abundance of bacteria is able to support higher level eukaryotes.

中文翻译：

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雨水对配水管网中生物膜密度和微生物群落组成的影响


在高需水期间收集雨水并将其注入含水层进行储存和回收是一项很有前途的技术，可以增加传统水储量。然而，关于雨水如何影响配水基础设施的生物污垢，人们知之甚少。本研究评估了与相同的饮用水管道钻机相比，在试点分配管网中，收集和石灰石含水层处理的雨水对生物膜形成的影响。由水泥、铜和聚氯乙烯 （PVC） 管道材料制成的挂片安装在每个管道钻机上，并暴露在雨水或饮用水中。对于两种来源水，通过流式细胞术在试验装置试样上测定的总细胞计数约为 10、⁵ 至 10、⁷ 个细胞/cm²，并且在研究期间显示出一些变化。雨水暴露的挂片的可培养细胞计数略高于自来水钻井平台中的挂片。暴露于雨水的挂片上的耐热大肠菌群总数明显高于暴露于自来水的挂片。使用焦磷酸测序，在由各种材料制成的挂片上观察到细菌和真核生物群落的相当大的差异，这些挂片暴露于自来水和雨水中。此外，在群落组成和多样性方面观察到季节性变化。在自来水和雨水系统中都检测到许多细菌和真核生物科以及含有潜在人类病原体的属，在后者中观察到的属数量较多，表明暴露于雨水中病原体的风险可能增加。雨水系统还含有减硫剂和更多种类的铁氧化剂。 在自来水和雨水系统中都观察到许多有助于氮循环的细菌属。检测到许多以真核生物为食的细菌，表明生物膜群落非常动态，细菌的丰富性能够支持更高水平的真核生物。