Occurrence and Origin of 'Escherichia coli' in Water and Sediments at Two Public Swimming Beaches at Lake of the Ozarks State Park, Camden County, Missouri, 2011-13.

摘要

In the past several years, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources has closed two popular public beaches, Grand Glaize Beach (GGB) and Public Beach 1, at Lake of the Ozarks State Park in Osage Beach, Missouri when monitoring results exceeded the established Escherichia coli (E. coli) standard. As a result of the beach closures, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, and in collaboration with the Missouri University of Science and Technology, led an investigation into the occurrence and origins of E. coli at GGB and Public Beach 1. The study included the collection of more than 1,300 water, sediment, and fecal source samples between August 2011 and February 2013 from the two beaches and vicinity. Spatial and temporal patterns of E. coli concentrations in water and sediments combined with measurements of environmental variables, beach-use patterns, and Missouri Department of Natural Resources water-tracing results were used to identify possible sources of E. coli contamination at the two beaches and to corroborate microbial source tracking (MST) sampling efforts.