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Micro-organisms, some of which can be harmful to humans, such as E. coli.

During the swimming season (around November/December to February/March), regional, unitary, district and city councils, along with public health agencies, assess the health risks from faecal (‘poo’) contamination at swimming spots. Toxic algae is also regularly monitored at some river and lake sites...

What do we mean by 'state'? On LAWA, we use the term 'state' to describe a site's current conditions. For a given indicator, the ‘state’ is an estimate of the concentration or value that you might expect to find in the groundwater if you were to take a sample from a well today.

What do we mean by ‘trend’? Groundwater quality is always changing. It may show short-term changes, like responses to rainfall events, chemical spills or groundwater pumping. It may show seasonal cycles, and it may respond differently to periods of wet or dry years. On top of these shorter-term vari...

Why are we recording the current state of our freshwaters? We measure the current state of our rivers, streams and lakes to get an idea about whether our water is suitable for use for various purposes, and about the effect of different pressures (e.g. urbanisation, farming, etc.) on the condition of...

Why are we recording the current state of our freshwaters? We measure the current state of our rivers, streams and lakes to get an idea about whether our water is suitable for use for various purposes, and about the effect of different pressures (e.g. urbanisation, farming, etc.) on the condition of...

A trend in water quality data indicates that measured values have been overall rising or falling over a time period.  LAWA displays trends for the last 5, 10 and 15 years for the river and lake water quality data. A trend may be classified as indeterminate if there is insufficient evidence to determ...

E. coli (Escherichia coli) is a type of bacteria commonly found in the gut of warm-blooded animals and people.  E. coli naturally occurs in freshwater and is not usually harmful in itself. However, high concentrations of this bacteria exceeding water quality guidelines indicate faecal contamination...

See E. coli

What are faecal indicator bacteria? Faecal indicator bacteria (FIB) are bacteria that come from the gut of warm-blooded animals (including people). FIB are introduced to the environment through animal and bird droppings, effluent and waste water discharges, and stormwater run-off. The presence of th...

Faecal microbes can cause disease in humans (“pathogens”) if they come in contact with them. Microbial pathogens can also be concentrated by filter-feeding shellfish, posing a risk to people eating shellfish. Faecal contamination is monitored using “indicator” microbes that are present in the faeces...

Particles of animal dung or human faeces which carry bacteria that can be harmful if ingested. See also E. coli. View a factsheet on Faecal indicators