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Our water pipes crawl with millions of bacteria
Researchers have discovered that our drinking water is
to a large extent purified by millions of "good bacteria"
found in water pipes and purification plants. So far, the
knowledge about them has been practically non-
existent, but this new
research is about to change
that.
A glass of clean drinking water
actually contains ten million
bacteria! But that is as it
should be -- clean tap water
always contains harmless
bacteria. These bacteria and
other microbes grow in the
drinking water treatment plant and on the inside of our water pipes,
which can be seen in the form of a thin, sticky coating -- a so-called
biofilm. All surfaces from the raw water intake to the tap are covered
in this biofilm.
Findings by researchers in Applied Microbiology and Water Resources
Engineering show that the diversity of species of bacteria in water
pipes is huge, and that bacteria may play a larger role than previously
thought. Among other things, the researchers suspect that a large part of
water purification takes place in the pipes and not only in water purification
plants.
"A previously completely unknown ecosystem has revealed itself to us.
Formerly, you could hardly see any bacteria at all and now, thanks to
techniques such as massive DNA sequencing and flow cytometry, we
suddenly see eighty thousand bacteria per millilitre in drinking water,"
says researchers enthusiastically.
"From having been in the dark with a flashlight, we are now in a brightly
lit room, but it is only one room. How many different rooms are in the
house is also an interesting question!" she continues.
The results have led to lively discussions within the industry about the role
of biofilms in
drinking water.
At least a couple of thousand different species
live in the water
pipes. According to the researchers there is a connection between the
composition of bacteria and water quality.
Bacteria and biofilms are found all over the world, in plumbing, taps and
water pipes. This knowledge will be very useful for countries when updating
and improving their water pipe systems.
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