Question

The presence of high coliform counts in water indicates:
a.) Contamination by human wastes
b.) Phosphorous wastes
c.) Decreased biological oxygen demand
d.) Hydrocarbon contamination

Answer 1

This question is part of environment chemistry and it has some relation to waste water. Now you just need to apply your basic ideas about wastes and its effects to the environment to answer this question.

Complete step by step answer:
To answer this question, firstly let u discuss what coliform is-
Coliform bacteria or Escherichia coli is a bacterium of the genus Escherichia and it is present in the intestine of warm blooded mammals.
The E. coli test is a water contamination test and is done by counting the number of coliform- bacteria E. coli colonies per 100 mL of water. The test is known as coliform microbial density.
The water quality standards are that drinking water should not have any bacteria E. coli colonies, bathing and swimming pool water should not exceed than 88 E. coli colonies per mL of water, and recreational (fishing and boating) water should not have higher than 407 E. coli colonies per 100mL of water.

Now, let us discuss the given question.
When man or other animals discharge faecal matter near water bodies these microorganisms enter the water and thus contaminate it.
The presence of faecal coliform in a drinking water sample indicates the recent faecal contamination. The presence of high coliform counts in water indicates contamination by human wastes.
So, the correct answer is “Option A”.

Note: We should also know the effects of wastewater. Wastewater effluents are major contributors to a variety of water pollution problems. Owing to lack of or improper wastewater treatment facilities, wastewater and its effluents are often discharged into surface water sources, which are receptacles for domestic and industrial wastes, resulting in pollution.
The poor quality of wastewater effluents is responsible for the degradation of the receiving surface water body.
Wastewater effluent should be treated efficiently to avert adverse health risks of the use of surface water resources and the aquatic ecosystem.