Operation and maintenance (O&M) of drinking water distribution networks (DWDNs) in tropical countries simultaneously face the control of acute and chronic risks due to the presence of microorganisms and disinfection by-products, respectively. In this study, results from a detailed field characterization of microbiological, chemical and infrastructural parameters of a tropical-climate DWDN are presented. Water physicochemical parameters and the characteristics of the network were assessed to evaluate the relationship between abiotic and microbiological factors and their association with the presence of total trihalomethanes (TTHMs). Illumina sequencing of the bacterial 16s rRNA gene revealed significant differences in the composition of biofilm and planktonic communities. The highly diverse biofilm communities showed the presence of methylotrophic bacteria, which suggest the presence of methyl radicals such as THMs within this habitat. Microbiological parameters correlated with water age, pH, temperature and free residual chlorine. The results from this study are necessary to increase the awareness of O&M practices in DWDNs required to reduce biofilm formation and maintain appropriate microbiological and chemical water quality, in relation to biofilm detachment and DBP formation.

热带国家的饮用水分配网络（DWDN）的运行和维护（O＆M）同时面临着由于微生物的存在和消毒副产物而分别面临的急性和慢性风险的控制。在这项研究中，给出了热带气候DWDN的微生物，化学和基础设施参数的详细现场表征结果。评估了水的理化参数和网络的特性，以评估非生物和微生物因素之间的关系以及它们与总三卤甲烷（TTHM）的相关性。细菌16s rRNA基因的Illumina测序揭示了生物膜和浮游生物群落组成的显着差异。高度多样化的生物膜群落表明存在甲基营养细菌，这表明该栖息地内存在甲基自由基，如THM。微生物参数与水龄，pH，温度和游离残留氯相关。这项研究的结果对于提高人们对DWDN的O＆M实践的认识是必要的，这些DWDN要求减少生物膜形成并保持适当的微生物和化学水质，与生物膜分离和DBP形成有关。