MICROBIOLOGY OF WATER SUPPLIES, WASTEWATER, AND OTHER AQUATIC ENVIRONMENTS
Long before the establishment of microbiology as a science, water was suspected of being a carrier of disease-producing organisms. But it was not until 1854 that an epidemic of cholera was proved to have had its origin in polluted water. Since that time there has been continuous research on the microbiology of public water supplies, including the development of laboratory procedures to determine whether the water is potable, or safe for human consumption. At the same time, purification procedures for these supplies have emerged.