Abstract
The occurrence of pathogenic viruses and indicator microorganisms in water samples from a wastewater treatment plant in Japan was investigated monthly from July 2003 to June 2004. Forty-eight samples of raw sewage, treated sewage before chlorination, effluent after chlorination, and reclaimed water after advanced wastewater treatment using sand filtration and ozonation were subjected to a virus concentration method using an HA electronegative membrane, followed by virus detection using a TaqMan PCR method. Noroviruses of genogroups I and II were detected in all 12 raw sewage samples, showing much higher concentrations in winter, an epidemic season. Corresponding to the occurrence in raw sewage, the concentrations of noroviruses in treated sewage and effluent also increased in winter. The concentrations of enteroviruses and adenoviruses in the tested samples were relatively constant compared with those of noroviruses. Noroviruses and adenoviruses were still detected even after advanced wastewater treatment, but the concentrations of these viruses were much lower than those in the effluent samples. Viruses were removed by wastewater treatment as effectively as indicator microorganisms (total coliforms, Escherichia coli, and F-specific phages), suggesting that sewerage systems can contribute to reducing the load of pathogenic viruses discharged into aquatic environments.
