Background
At present, public health concerns remain focused on
waterborne diseases, with incidence data in both developed
and developing countries making gastroenteritisSince the late 19th century, bacteria have been used as
indicators of water quality [3]. Although there are reports
concerning the inadequacy of bacteria as microbiological
water quality indicators [4], it has been recognized that
they are indicators of a broad bacterial group and regular
human microbiota [5]. Nevertheless, bacteria alone offer
limited information regarding microbiological water
quality as they do not reflect the presence of enteric
viruses or protozoa [6].