Concentrations of bacteria in storm water runoff

The introduction of pollutants into storm water runoff can be concerning since it can act as a vector for environmental pollution or even household contamination. This study will assess the microbial contamination of storm water runoff from various sources including a metal roof, a photocell, and dry wells collecting roof and parking lot runoff on the USU campus. The microbes being tested for are total coliforms, E. coli, and enterococcus. ISCO auto samplers and grab samples were used to gather storm water samples. Simulations were ran using off-gassed tap water on the metal roof a photovoltaic cell. The concentrations of the three microbes in the samples were determined using the IDEXX Quanti-tray 2000 system. It was found that samples taken from the dry wells had greater concentrations of total coliform and E. coli than surface samples. It was also found that the metal roof on the pump house had greater concentrations of all three indicator bacteria than the photovoltaic cell atop the roof.