Global warming raises new E. coli concerns, U of G prof says

Temporary closures like Toronto’s waterfront Budapest Park and associated Sunnyside Beach last week to protect against potentially dangerous organisms doesn’t surprise local environmental scientist Jack Trevors, the University of Guelph environmental sciences professor and his colleagues said:

• The organism at the heart of the Walkerton tragedy a decade ago represents a rising threat as the world warms.  Warning further study is critical to meeting any risk.
• The public may be at increasing risk as E. coli, which contaminates water and soil, finds an inviting environment in a warming planet.
• While people carry benign E. coli is in their guts, some strains, notably 0157:H7, are dangerous.
• There are pathotypes that produce toxins.
• That allowed scientists to extrapolate potential risks from a global warming trend conducive to bacterial growth including threats to beaches, food supply and source drinking water.
• We know we’re living in a period of climate change.
• As human populations grow, they use more food and fuel, this activity warming the Earth.
• That raises the prospect of these populations increasingly encountering E. coli
• We have to deal with it in an effective way.

Source: Global warming raises new E. coli concerns, U of G prof says – news.guelphmercury

Date: 06 July 2010