ASSESSMENT OF BACTERIAL CONTAMINATION OF SURFACE WATERS OF THE RIVER DNIEPER FROM THE RECREATIONAL ZONES OF THE LEFT BANK OF ZAPORIZHZHIA

Abstract

The problem of environmental safety is relevant for all water recreational facilities in Ukraine. The quality of the natural environment, and, accordingly, the scale of the recreational use of water bodies largely depends on the impact on natural complexes of various unfavorable anthropogenic factors. These include, first of all, the release of untreated and insufficiently treated wastewater, pollution of water bodies by wastewater from unsettled territories of industrial and agricultural use, air pollution by pollutants, etc. These anthropogenic influences limit the recreational possibilities of aquatorial natural complexes and are dangerous for the health of vacationers.In addition to physical and chemical pollution, biological pollution of surface waters has become widespread, in particular microbial, the test indicator of which is E. coli, saprophytic bacteria and enterococci. When ingested, they can cause acute intestinal infections, fever, nausea, etc.It was determined in the work that the average annual number of saprophytic bacteria, for five years of research, varied from 25.5 to 35.5 thousand cells/cm3, which within the ecological classification corresponds to the IV class and 6 categories of water quality , according to the degree of pollution «dirty»).The results of the assessment of bacterial contamination of the surface waters of the river. The Dnieper from the recreational zones of the Left Bank of Zaporizhzhia over a five-year period indicate an unstable ecological state of the studied waters according to such bacterial indicators as the PEC index and the number of saprophytic bacteria. This makes it necessary to carry out environmental protection measures in order to increase the level of environmental safety in the zones of water recreation.