American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry

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Effect of Irrigation Water Quality on the Microbial Contamination of Fresh Vegetables in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon

Received: 07 October 2018    Accepted: 23 October 2018    Published: 15 November 2018
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Abstract

Irrigation water is probably the leading source of contamination of fresh vegetables in the world. In agricultural intensive areas, surface and groundwater resources are more likely to be exposed to be contaminated with zoonotic bacteria, given their close proximity to sources of faeces from livestock, dairy farms and wildlife. The aim of this study was to determine the role of irrigation water as a vehicle for the transmission of zoonotic bacteria of faecal origin and its contribution to the bacterial contamination of fresh vegetables to conclude with a need of risk management in rural areas. First, to determine the magnitude and the frequency of faecal contamination and the pathogens in the water source, the microbiological quality of the water resources used in irrigation in the studied area, including the upper Litani and the private wells located near its basin was investigated. In a second step, an assessment of the microbiological quality of the fresh vegetables irrigated from these water resources was done. A total of twelve different vegetables comprising spinach, parsley, cabbage and lettuce and 38 water samples were collected from both the well waters and the Litani River from the 5 studied sites and analyzed for a period of 5 months, to assess the microbial contamination level. Samples were analyzed for aerobic bacteria, total coliforms, faecal coliforms, E.coli and S.aureus. All vegetables sampled during the study period recorded high level of coliforms, E.coli and S.aureus. The microbial load recorded in the water samples was generally higher than that recorded in the vegetables. Since most of these vegetables are eaten fresh or slightly cooked, there is a concern on the public health that will be affected. Education of farmers and consumers on food safety has to be intensified to avert a possible outbreak.

DOI 10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16
Published in American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry (Volume 6, Issue 6, November 2018)
Page(s) 191-197
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Faecal Coliforms, Irrigation Water, Well Water, Contaminated Vegetables

References
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Author Information
  • Doctoral School of Science and Technology, Research Platform for Environmental Science (PRASE), Faculty of Sciences, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon; Environmental Health Research Lab (EHRL), Faculty of Sciences V, Lebanese University, Nabatieh, Lebanon

  • Doctoral School of Science and Technology, Research Platform for Environmental Science (PRASE), Faculty of Sciences, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon

  • National Center for Remote Sensing, National Council for Scientific Research (CNRS), Beirut, Lebanon

  • Doctoral School of Science and Technology, Research Platform for Environmental Science (PRASE), Faculty of Sciences, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon; Environmental Health Research Lab (EHRL), Faculty of Sciences V, Lebanese University, Nabatieh, Lebanon

  • Doctoral School of Science and Technology, Research Platform for Environmental Science (PRASE), Faculty of Sciences, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon

Cite This Article
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    Amale Mcheik, Ali Awad, Ali Fadel, Carine Mounzer, Salam Nasreddine. (2018). Effect of Irrigation Water Quality on the Microbial Contamination of Fresh Vegetables in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon. American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry, 6(6), 191-197. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16

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    ACS Style

    Amale Mcheik; Ali Awad; Ali Fadel; Carine Mounzer; Salam Nasreddine. Effect of Irrigation Water Quality on the Microbial Contamination of Fresh Vegetables in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon. Am. J. Agric. For. 2018, 6(6), 191-197. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16

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    AMA Style

    Amale Mcheik, Ali Awad, Ali Fadel, Carine Mounzer, Salam Nasreddine. Effect of Irrigation Water Quality on the Microbial Contamination of Fresh Vegetables in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon. Am J Agric For. 2018;6(6):191-197. doi: 10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16,
      author = {Amale Mcheik and Ali Awad and Ali Fadel and Carine Mounzer and Salam Nasreddine},
      title = {Effect of Irrigation Water Quality on the Microbial Contamination of Fresh Vegetables in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon},
      journal = {American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry},
      volume = {6},
      number = {6},
      pages = {191-197},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajaf.20180606.16},
      abstract = {Irrigation water is probably the leading source of contamination of fresh vegetables in the world. In agricultural intensive areas, surface and groundwater resources are more likely to be exposed to be contaminated with zoonotic bacteria, given their close proximity to sources of faeces from livestock, dairy farms and wildlife. The aim of this study was to determine the role of irrigation water as a vehicle for the transmission of zoonotic bacteria of faecal origin and its contribution to the bacterial contamination of fresh vegetables to conclude with a need of risk management in rural areas. First, to determine the magnitude and the frequency of faecal contamination and the pathogens in the water source, the microbiological quality of the water resources used in irrigation in the studied area, including the upper Litani and the private wells located near its basin was investigated. In a second step, an assessment of the microbiological quality of the fresh vegetables irrigated from these water resources was done. A total of twelve different vegetables comprising spinach, parsley, cabbage and lettuce and 38 water samples were collected from both the well waters and the Litani River from the 5 studied sites and analyzed for a period of 5 months, to assess the microbial contamination level. Samples were analyzed for aerobic bacteria, total coliforms, faecal coliforms, E.coli and S.aureus. All vegetables sampled during the study period recorded high level of coliforms, E.coli and S.aureus. The microbial load recorded in the water samples was generally higher than that recorded in the vegetables. Since most of these vegetables are eaten fresh or slightly cooked, there is a concern on the public health that will be affected. Education of farmers and consumers on food safety has to be intensified to avert a possible outbreak.},
     year = {2018}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Effect of Irrigation Water Quality on the Microbial Contamination of Fresh Vegetables in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon
    AU  - Amale Mcheik
    AU  - Ali Awad
    AU  - Ali Fadel
    AU  - Carine Mounzer
    AU  - Salam Nasreddine
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    T2  - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry
    JF  - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry
    JO  - American Journal of Agriculture and Forestry
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    EP  - 197
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2330-8591
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajaf.20180606.16
    AB  - Irrigation water is probably the leading source of contamination of fresh vegetables in the world. In agricultural intensive areas, surface and groundwater resources are more likely to be exposed to be contaminated with zoonotic bacteria, given their close proximity to sources of faeces from livestock, dairy farms and wildlife. The aim of this study was to determine the role of irrigation water as a vehicle for the transmission of zoonotic bacteria of faecal origin and its contribution to the bacterial contamination of fresh vegetables to conclude with a need of risk management in rural areas. First, to determine the magnitude and the frequency of faecal contamination and the pathogens in the water source, the microbiological quality of the water resources used in irrigation in the studied area, including the upper Litani and the private wells located near its basin was investigated. In a second step, an assessment of the microbiological quality of the fresh vegetables irrigated from these water resources was done. A total of twelve different vegetables comprising spinach, parsley, cabbage and lettuce and 38 water samples were collected from both the well waters and the Litani River from the 5 studied sites and analyzed for a period of 5 months, to assess the microbial contamination level. Samples were analyzed for aerobic bacteria, total coliforms, faecal coliforms, E.coli and S.aureus. All vegetables sampled during the study period recorded high level of coliforms, E.coli and S.aureus. The microbial load recorded in the water samples was generally higher than that recorded in the vegetables. Since most of these vegetables are eaten fresh or slightly cooked, there is a concern on the public health that will be affected. Education of farmers and consumers on food safety has to be intensified to avert a possible outbreak.
    VL  - 6
    IS  - 6
    ER  - 

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