BACTERIAL COMMUNITY COMPOSITION MONITORING FOR THE IMPACT OF COMBINED SEWER OVER-FLOW INTO HIGASHIYOKOBORI-GAWA WATERWAY, AND ITS REMEDIAL EFFECTS BY BUILDING A STORMWATER STORAGE PIPE

Abstract

 We explored the impact of combined sewer overflow (CSO) on the water quality of an urban river. We characterized the bacterial community of the Higashiyokobori-gawa waterway using next-generation DNA sequencing (Illumina Miseq). We examined bacterial 16S rRNA gene amplicons during rainfall periods. When rainfall exceeded 4 mm/h at our experimental site on the waterway, the bacterial community composition in the river water exhibited transient changes attributable to the CSO. The bacterial community composition in the waterway differed greatly from those in sewage, suggesting that the CSO had been diluted with bulk rainwater prior to discharge into the river. After a newly constructed stormwater storage pipe called Heisei-no-Taikougesui was commissioned, we found no changes in the bacterial community in river water even when rainfall exceeded 8 mm/h. This indicates that the storage pipe effectively prevented CSO discharge into the waterway. We suggest that bacterial community composition analysis is useful when evaluating/monitoring water quality.