Enterococci
What is it? Enterococci is a fecal coliform bacteria, similar to E.coli. It lives in the intestines of warm-blooded mammals, including humans. It is mainly monitored in marine water, but is increasingly monitored in freshwater as an indicator of health risk to bathers.
Why is it important? While Enterococci is naturally occurring in our environment, it can make us sick if we ingest it in our drinking waters, or are exposed to it while swimming or engaging in other recreational water activities.
What does it mean? The concentration of enterococci in a water sample is typically measured per 100ml. Guideline values for enterococci have been developed based on the analysis of epidemiological evidence relating concentrations of these organisms to the incidence of swimming-associated gastrointestinal illness observed among swimmers.