Research Supporting Development of the 2012 Recreational Water Quality Criteria

Critical Path Science Plan

The Critical Science Plan describes the overall research goals, key science questions associated with data gaps in the existing science, and the studies that the EPA intends to conduct or support to develop new or revised water quality criteria for pathogens and pathogen indicators.

The Critical Path Science Plan was informed, in part, by the input on the essential research and science needs identified by 43 international and U.S. experts from academia, States, public interest groups, the EPA and other federal agencies who attended a scientific workshop held by the EPA in March 2007. The EPA sponsored the workshop to get individual input from the greater scientific and technical community on the near-term research and science needs to develop new or revised Clean Water Act Section 304(a) criteria. All of the research activities included in the Critical Path Science Plan were identified in the Experts Report as high priority. The EPA further prioritized the research activities identified by the experts so as to focus on only the studies that the EPA believed could be designed, conducted and effectively incorporated into the development and publication of new or revised criteria within a reasonable time frame.

• Critical Path Science Plan (pdf) (492.89 KB, August 2007, EPA 823-R-08-002)
• Critical Path Science Plan Errata (pdf) (23.42 KB, December 2007)

The projects and activities represent high priority research and science that the EPA conducted to establish the scientific foundation for the development of new or revised recreational water quality criteria recommendations. Full descriptions of each project and others can be found in the Critical Path Science Plan.

Epidemiological studies were part of the National Epidemiological and Environmental Assessment of Recreational Water (NEEAR).

• Review of Published Studies to Characterize Relative Risks from Different Sources of Fecal Contamination in Recreational Water (pdf) (1.47 MB, February 2009, EPA 822-R-09-001)
  Complete a literature review that describes the existing knowledgebase available to characterize the relative risks of human illness from various sources of fecal contamination in recreational waters
• Review of Zoonotic Pathogens in Ambient Waters (pdf) (2.41 MB, February 2009, EPA 822-R-09-002)
  Complete a literature review that provides a summary of information on waterborne zoonotic pathogens that come primarily from warm-blooded animals
• Report on 2009 National Epidemiologic and Environmental Assessment of Recreational Water Epidemiology Studies (pdf) (16.78 MB, EPA 600-R-10-168)
  Complete an epidemiological study in marine waters impacted by urban runoff in a temperate region and tropical region
• Assessment of the Extra-Enteric Behavior of Fecal Indicator Organisms in Ambient Waters (pdf) (1.45 MB)
• Rapidly measured indicators of recreational water quality and swimming-associated illness at marine beaches: a prospective cohort study
  Conduct epidemiological studies at POTW-impacted marine beaches in Fairhope, Alabama and Goddard, Rhode Island (P1, P2)
• Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment to Estimate Illness in Freshwater Impacted by Agricultural Animal Sources of Fecal Contamination (pdf) (9.81 MB)
  Conduct QMRA (based on measurements of pathogenic organisms and indicators) to estimate illness at a freshwater beach impacted by agricultural animal sources of fecal contamination (location to be determined) (P4)
• A Study of the Various Parameters that Affect the Performance of the New Rapid U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) Method for Enterococcus Detection and Comparison with Other Methods and Pathogens in Treated (pdf) (16.13 MB)
  Study various parameters that affect performance of qPCR signal for enterococci and compare with other methods and pathogens in treated wastewater mixed with ambient waters (enterococci, E. coli, Cryptosporidium, and enterovirus) (P8)
• Sampling and Consideration of Variability (Temporal and Spatial) For Monitoring of Recreational Waters (pdf) (1.42 MB)
  Design and evaluate a monitoring approach that will characterize the quality of beach waters that takes into account the spatial and temporal variability associated with water sampling (P12)
• Evaluation of Multiple Indicator Combinations to Develop Quantifiable Relationships (pdf) (1.42 MB)
  Evaluate multiple indicator/method combinations to develop quantifiable relationships (P15)
• Effects of Holding Time, Storage, and the Preservation of Samples on Sample Integrity for the Detection of Fecal Indicator Bacteria by Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (pdf) (474.26 KB)
  Study the effects of sampling holding time, sample storage, and preservation on sample integrity for future use (P16)
• Method A: Enterococci in Water by TaqMan Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) Assay (pdf) (7.69 MB, April 2010, EPA 821-R-10-004)
  Develop, refine, validate, and publish one or more new ambient
• Method B: Bacteroidales in Water by TaqMan Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) Assay (pdf) (8.69 MB, Junr 2010, EPA 822-R-10-003)
  develop, refine, validate, and publish one or more new wastewater test method(s) provided the results of P8 and P18 indicate that a new wastewater test method is necessary (P17)
• Evaluation of the Suitability of Individual Combinations of Indicators and Methods for Different Clean Water Act Programs (pdf) (175.79 KB) (P18)
• Re-analyze archived NEEAR samples using molecular methods for other indicators, including at least E. coli, provided the samples have not degraded during storage (depending on the outcome of P16 and the nature of indicator/method) (P22) *
• Predictive Modeling at Beaches Volume II: Predictive Tools for Beach Notification (pdf) (4.59 MB, November 22, 2010, EPA 600-R-10-176)
  • Pilot test Virtual Beach model for beach notification and advisories/closures (P23)
  • Refine and validate existing water quality models for freshwater beach notification and advisories/closures (P24)
  • Refine and validate other existing water quality models for marine beach notification and advisories/closures (P25)
• Predictive Tools for Beach Notification Volume I: Review and Technical Protocol (pdf) (1.22 MB)
  Develop technical protocol for site-specific application of predictive models to be used in making beach advisory decisions (P26)
• Compare the EPA’s 1986 Bacteria Criteria recommendations to NEEAR studies to better understand the relationship between fecal contamination and illness in these data sets, provided the EPA can obtain the raw data used to develop the 1986 Criteria (P27) *
• Applicability of Great Lakes NEEAR Dataset to Inland Recreational Water Criteria: Summary of Key Studies (pdf) (553.3 KB)
  Evaluate applicability of NEEAR Great Lakes data to inland waters (P28)
• Conduct statistical analysis of children data from epidemiological studies (P29) (pdf) (83.9 KB)

* Projects were not completed due to contingencies identified in the Settlement Agreement.