Updated February 2023

Topics

• Bacterial transport – hydrology studies; what are the bacterial sources? (Transport and time- of-travel studies to estimate when a pollution plume would reach a coastal swimming beach)
• How harmful to human health is enterococcus bacteria in beach waters?  
  • Epidemiology studies of recreational water-born illness.
  • Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA) studies for specific beaches
• Bacterial issues in and around Georgia coastal marinas
• How can we better detect pathogens in beach waters?
  • Predictive modeling to correlate environmental factors to elevated levels of bacteria
• Correlations between DO levels and tannins in Georgia coastal rivers
• Effects of wetlands and land use practices on instream flows (at multiple scales from site to regional)
• Beachfront shoreline change modeling/predictive ability considerate of natural and anthropogenic inputs
• Similar to predictive modeling as above in beach water pathogens but focused on point source discharges and accidental releases
• Appropriate DO criteria that is protective of aquatic species present