Algae-bacteria community analysis for drinking water taste and odour risk management

Hooper, Annalise Sara, Christofides, Sarah R., Windsor, Fredric M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5030-3470, Watson, Sophie E., Kille, Peter ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6023-5221 and Perkins, Rupert G. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0810-2656 2024. Algae-bacteria community analysis for drinking water taste and odour risk management. Water 17 (1) , 79. 10.3390/w17010079

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Abstract

Geosmin and 2-methylisoborneol (2-MIB) are secondary bacterial metabolites that create an earthy-musty taste and odour (T&O) in drinking water. Both compounds exhibit low odour thresholds and are the leading causes of customer complaints to water companies worldwide. Water companies must predict spikes in T&O concentrations early to intervene before these compounds reach the treatment works. Cyanobacteria are key producers of T&O in open waters, yet the influence of broader microbial and algal communities on cyanobacterial T&O events remains unclear. This study identified T&O risk indicator taxa using next-generation sequencing of bacterial (16S rRNA) and algal (rbcL) communities in three reservoirs in Wales, UK. Ordination analysis of these communities revealed clustering according to assigned T&O concentration levels, identifying T&O signature communities. Random Forest (RF) analyses accurately classified samples for high and low concentrations of geosmin and 2-MIB, demonstrating the biological consortium’s predictive power. Based on shared ecological traits of bacterial and algal taxa, we propose five categories corresponding to different magnitudes of T&O risk. Indicator taxa in T&O risk categories can then be used to predict T&O events, empowering water companies first to optimise treatment response and, importantly, to determine triggers before an event to evidence preventative intervention management.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	Published
Schools:	Biosciences Earth and Environmental Sciences
Additional Information:	License information from Publisher: LICENSE 1: URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, Start Date: 2024-12-31
Publisher:	MDPI
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	16 January 2025
Date of Acceptance:	25 December 2024
Last Modified:	16 Jan 2025 11:30
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/175316

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