Elevated levels of bacteria and parasites are showing up in some Alberta water supplies.
A four-year study of the effects of agriculture on Alberta water quality revealed pockets within the province have high levels of E. coli and fecal coliform. These bacteria can cause problems for people like upset stomachs and diarrhea.
“We are seeing impacts on water quality in special areas,” said Brent Paterson, of Alberta Agriculture’s irrigation branch.
The complete study will be released later this fall. It does not blame agriculture entirely. Wildlife and human encroachment also can contribute, said Paterson.
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Fecal coliform bacteria are found in the intestinal tracts of wildlife, livestock, waterfowl and humans. Their presence in water indicates it was contaminated by fecal wastes from manure, sewage systems or wildlife.
The study involved the provincial and federal departments of health, environment, agriculture and the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration. As a result of the study, a new Alberta team for environmentally sustainable agriculture was named to monitor long-term water quality with the power to fix problems before they get out of hand, said Paterson.
“Water quality is important and people want to be assured that their water is safe.”
However, people must take some responsibility for protecting their health. People should not drink surface water from dugouts, irrigation canals, streams or rivers without proper treatment, said Paterson. And all municipal water supplies have to be treated according to Canadian drinking water guidelines.
“It’s become tougher for some smaller communities to adhere to those standards,” said Paul Hasselback, vice-chair of the Chinook Regional Health Authority.
Some towns like Picture Butte are looking at having water piped from Lethbridge, 24 kilometres away.
As a guardian of public health, the authority receives complaints about the concentration of intensive livestock in the southwest. Hasselback said southern Alberta’s concentration of feedlots, piggeries and dairies has people concerned about air quality when the real issue should be water quality.
“There is potential for a health concern related to certain unsustainable agricultural practices,” said the Lethbridge physician.
“This region has one of the highest enteric disease rates in Alberta.”
The health authority is taking complaints about odor seriously.
“There seems to be an increasing number of actual individuals who perceive health problems related to those odors,” he said. Odors can worsen asthma, headache, nausea and vomiting.
But Hasselback said water quality problems can’t be tied for sure to livestock operations.
“The area is under-researched. The research we are doing suggests that there is a relationship. A significant portion of those individuals have related agricultural practices in some fashion.”
Compared to odor problems, surface and ground water quality can be documented by the number of people complaining about water-related illnesses.
The health authority has specifically targeted E. coli, salmonella and campylobacter for further study.
These bacteria often cause food poisoning and can be transmitted through direct contact with infected humans or animals, said a report from the Chinook health authority.
The bacteria may also be picked up by swimming or bathing in contaminated water.
The authority is also researching parasites like cryptosporidium, which are linked to waterborne disease outbreaks in several communities.
More than 750 people in Kelowna, B.C. were affected two summers ago and in 1991 an outbreak in Milwaukee, Wisconsin was responsible for more than 100 deaths.
