Evaluating Variations In the Enumeration of Fecal Contaminants Between Agricultural and Commercial Watersheds In Madison County, Alabama.

The goal of this research is to identify the potential risk of fecal contamination within the eight sites of the Huntsville Spring Branch and Indian Creek watersheds in Madison County, Alabama. This will be accomplished by analyzing the number of total coliforms, E.coli, and enterococci in all sites, comparing the number of total coliforms, E.coli, and enterococci between the two watersheds and among the sites within each watershed, and evaluating the effects of physical and chemical characteristics on the presence of total coliforms, E. coli, and enterococci. The methods used in this experiment included sample collection, enumeration of total coliforms, E.coli, and enterococci using the IDEXX Colilert and Enterolert kits, and a statistical analysis of total coliforms, E.coli, and enterococci. The statistical analysis included the enumeration of total coliforms, E.coli, and enterococci, the average calculated of total coliforms, E.coli, and enterococci in each site and between the watersheds, and the ratios of E.coli, enterococci and total coliform to total coliform bacteria. The Huntsville Spring Branch and Indian Creek watersheds both had poor water quality. The watersheds both had an equal amount of total coliforms, but on average the Indian Creek watershed had a higher amount of enterococci than the Huntsville Spring Branch watershed. The Huntsville Spring Branch watershed had more E.coli than Indian Creek. Also, the Indian Creek watershed had high levels of turbidity. Based on the results, there was no significant difference between the watersheds of fecal contamination.