Health Related Water Microbiology
Specialist Group Newsletter
Volume 22 – December 2020

Contents
 Message from our chair (pg 1)
 COVID-19 Taskforce of Japan Society on Water
Environment (pg 3)
 Journal of Water and Health Special Issue“Antimicrobial Resistance in the Water Environment”
to be published (pg 3)
 Update on quantifying the antibiotic concentrations
which can lead to evolution of antibiotic resistance inaquatic environments (pg 4)
 News on Quality Control of UV-Devices for Drinking
Water Disinfection - Harmonization of quality standards
in Europe (pg 5)
 European Geosciences Union General Assembly
Announcement (pg 6)
 Hygiene Quality of Natural Swimming Pools (pg 7)
 Catalan Surveillance Network of SARS-CoV-2 inSewage, interactive map and free access database (pg 8)
 IWA Membership (pg 8)
 Getting to know the YWP Chapter from Austria (pg 10)
 Water Reuse (pg 10)
 Call for papers to a special issue “COVID-19 andwater” in Journal of Water and Health (pg 11)
 Automated online monitoring of faecal pollution inwater by enzymatic methods – a brief overview (pg 12)
 Notification to HRWM Members: Management
Committee Elections and Way Forward (pg14)
 Announcement: Seeking YWP Instagrammer to join
Management Committee (pg 14)

Message
chair

from

our

Dear colleagues and friends of the HRWM family!
COVID-19 continues to have our society firmly
under control. The pandemic is demanding a lot
from all of us, both individually and on the societal
level. There is hope to cope well with this serious
situation gives, since many scientific teams areworking together worldwide to conduct basic
research to find out more about this virus, toestablish strategies for infection control, and todevelop drugs and vaccines to combat thisdisease.
Our SG HRWM was and is also actively
contributing to this task. Apart from the fact that a
number of our members are successfully working
and publishing on this topic, we held a successful
webinar on July 21, 2020, on COVID-19
Wastewater-based Epidemiology. The webinar
can still be listened to (https://iwanetwork.org/learn/covid-19-wastewater-basedepidemiology/ ). Many thanks to Rosina, Anna
Maria, Veronica, Scott and Daisuke for their
excellent contributions.

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Another activity in this field is the participation of
our SG HRWM in the IWA COVID-19 Task Force. In
the last two meetings of our HRWM Management
Committee (MC) in September and November
2020 we had to make some essential
organizational decisions with the help of the IWA
headquarters. This primarily concerns the holdingof our biennial symposium, which was to takeplace in Darwin Australia in September 2021.
Together with the organizing team for our 21st
HRWM Symposium represented by Darryl Day,
Amy Dysart and Anne Roiko, we decided topostpone this by one year to September 4-9, 2022.
Currently it is not possible to predict what the
pandemic situation will be like in September 2021,
so it would be very difficult to organize a congress,
and its holding is uncertain.
Instead, we will organize a series of three to four
on-line workshops / webinars in September 2021.
We kindly ask you all to submit suggestions for
topics, speakers and contributors until February
1, 2021, to our secretary Daisuke Sano. The best
proposals will be selected and formed to a weekly
series! As a very positive prospect, we can lookforward that we all will meet again at the 21st
HRWM symposium in Darwin in September 2021.
Another decision concerned the voting andappointment of the next Management Team (MT)and Management Committee (MC), which so far
always took place in connection with our biennial
symposium. After long discussions andconsultation by the IWA Headquarters, a vote washeld within the MC. The unanimous result showedthat the current composition of the MT and MC
will be maintained inorder to provide good
support for the next
Symposium 2022 in

Darwin and to allow a smooth transition for the
next board. We believe that we have acted in thebest interest of all HRWM members.
The fact that there is a wonderful newsletter twicea year is thanks to Maronel Steyn, who isconstantly collecting contributions and putting
them into a beautiful form. We wish you apleasant reading!
Please keep sending in contributions, we are
already collecting material for the next newsletter.
Contributions for our website, managed by
Daisuke Sano, are very welcome, too(https://hrwm-watermicro.com ).
At the end of this very unusual year 2020, I would
like to thank the MT members Rosina Girones andHiro Katayama for their continuous support andDaisuke Sano for his excellent work as secretary.
My thank goes to the MC members for helpful
exchange of opinions and contributions and to allof you as HRWM members.
I am looking forward to our virtual meeting at the
HRWM workshops in September 2021 and apersonal reunion of the HRWM family in Darwin
2022. I think the personal contact and exchange
are what we miss most in these times.
I wish you and your families alla happy and healthy year in
2021!
Warm regards
Regina Sommer
HRWM Chair

Photo of Management
Committee taken at the20th HRWM symposiumin Vienna, happily
spending time together.
Phot credit: Zsolt
Marton_________Pg2
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COVID-19 Taskforce ofJapan
Societyon
Water Environment- Article credit: Daisuke Sano
Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has
gotten a lot of attention, also in Japan. The
COVID- 19 Taskforce has been organized under
the President of Japan Society on Water
Environment (JSWE) since May 5, 2020. In total 16
top researchers have joined in this JSWE COVID-19
Taskforce. The taskforce chair is Prof. Emer.
Tatsuo Omura, Tohoku University, and thesecretary general is Assoc. Prof. Ryo Honda,
Kanazawa University. The mission of this taskforce
is to establish a standard protocol of WBE for
SARS-CoV-2, disseminate academic information
with regards to WBE in Japan to the world,collaborate
withrelatedinternational
communities, including IWA COVID-19 Taskforce,provide with information exchange platforms, andorganize seminars about WBE protocols. Pleasecontact
with
Dr.
Ryo
Honda
(rhonda@se.kanazawa-u.ac.jp) if you areinterested in the status of SARS-CoV-2 WBE in
Japan.

than 700,000 people worldwide die each year
because of AMR resistance. While the relative roleof the environment is unclear at this stage, an
important first step is to identify hotspots of AMR
spread and human exposure, and explore (viamodelling) possible benefits of actions aimed to
cut/reduce the load of AMR agents into various
environments. The Journal of Water and Healthwill publish a Special Issue related to AMR in thewater environment, in which seven papers feature
a mixture of primary research, reviews andcommentaries, including, but not limited to thedetection, monitoring and surveillance of AMR
genes in various water types, sewage, activatedsludge and in wastewater reuse. The occurrence
and distribution of antimicrobials, antibiotic
resistant bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes
was determined by a variety of techniques using
the latest information available in both developing
and developed countries. Guest editors of thisspecial issue are: Tasha Santiago-Rodriguez,(Diversigen Inc., USA), Daisuke Sano (Tohoku
University, Japan) and Gary A. Toranzos(University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico).

Journal of Water and
Health Special Issue“Antimicrobial
Resistance in the
Water Environment”
to be publishedMaronel Steyn

Tasha Santiago-Rodriques

Daisuke SanoGary Toranzos- Article credit Maronel Steyn, Tasha Santiago-Rodrigues,
Daisuke Sano, and Gary Toranzos

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) has been raised asimportant for the international agenda. AMR is
not only an immediate major threat to global
health but also impacts global economies. More_________Pg3
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Update on quantifying the antibiotic
concentrations which can lead to evolution of
antibiotic resistance in aquatic environments- Article contributed by Mohan Amarasiri1, Takashi Furukawa1, Daisuke Sano2, Kazunari Sei1
1 - School of Allied Health Sciences, Kitasato University, Japan.
2 - Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Tohoku University, Japan.

Antibiotic concentrations in aquatic environments are usually lower than minimum inhibitory concentrations(MIC). However, studies have shown that selection can occur at antibiotic concentrations much lower thanthe MICs. Minimum selective concentration (MSC) is the lowest antibiotic concentration where the resistantstrain is enriched over the susceptible strain 1. Two recent articles have focused on determining the MSCs
and lowest observed effect concentrations (LOEC) of antibiotics in aquatic environments using complex
microbial communities.
By analysing wastewater treatment plant influent microbial community, significant positive selection for
ermF gene was observed at 750µg/L for three macrolide antibiotics (azithromycin, clarithromycin, anderythromycin); which was lowest among the evaluated antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) when estimatedusing qPCR, and MSC of 514.1µg/L was calculated for erythromycin. Meanwhile, MSC estimated for
ciprofloxacin based on intI1 for the same community was 10.77 µg/L 2. Predicted no effects concentration(PNEC) of ciprofloxacin was determined as 1.077 µg/L which was lower than some of the reported
environmental concentrations, suggesting the selection for fluoroquinolone resistance in such environments.
Instead of determining the MSCs for each bacterial strain, a recent study utilized the reduction in growth rateof a bacterial community at different antibiotic concentrations to predict selection for AMR and to evaluate
the LOEC of antibiotics, hypothesizing that significant reduction of bacterial growth is indicative of selection
occurring (SELection Endpoints in Communities of bacTeria; SELECT assay) 3. PNEC for resistance (PNECR)
and risk quotient (RQ) which is the predicted or measured environmental concentration divided by PNEC was
calculated for 8 antibiotics. RQs of <0.1, 0.1 to <1, and >1 were defined as having low, medium or high risk of
selection for antimicrobial resistance. SELECT assay complimented the study by Stanton et al. on theunacceptable risk of ciprofloxacin by showing both RQMED and RQMAX values greater than 1. Trimethoprim,azithromycin, and cefotaxime also had RQMAX values greater than 1 while none of the other antibiotics had
RQMED values greater than 0.1. The results compliment the recommendation of ciprofloxacin in European
Union Water Framework Directive watchlist.
Above methods can be used to rapidly determine PNECR which hints about antimicrobial resistance (AMR)
hotspots, and also in regulatory decision making to determine allowable antibiotic concentrations in water
environments leading to reduced occurrences in AMR development. Above studies also highlight theimportance of evaluating additive or synergistic effects of compounds which can lead to lower PNECR andhigher RQ values.
1. Gullberg, E. et al. Selection of resistant bacteria at very low antibiotic concentrations. PLoS Pathog. 7, e1002158 (2011).
2. Stanton, I. C., Murray, A. K., Zhang, L., Snape, J. & Gaze, W. H. Evolution of antibiotic resistance at low antibiotic concentrations
including selection below the minimal selective concentration. Commun. Biol. 3, 467 (2020).
3. Murray, A. K. et al. The ‘SELection End points in Communities of bacTeria’ (SELECT) Method: A Novel Experimental Assay to
Facilitate Risk Assessment of Selection for Antimicrobial Resistance in the Environment. Environ. Health Perspect. 128, 107007 (2020)_________Pg4
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Newson
Quality
Control of UV-Devices
for Drinking Water
Disinfection Harmonization of quality
standards in Europe- Article Credit: Regina Sommer

The increased acceptance of UV drinking water
disinfection is attributed, amongst other reasons,to the better understanding of the process and thehigher quality assurance of the UV disinfection
devices. Establishment of quality standards on therequirements, including validation testing andcertification of commercial UV devices, haveprovided the basis for the safe application of UV
irradiation as primary disinfection for drinking
water supply.
So far, the Austrian national standards ÖNORM M
5873-1 (low pressure UV radiation; versions 1996,
2001), ÖNORM M 5873-2 (medium pressure UV
radiation; version 2003) and the Work sheet W
294; versions 1997, 2006) by the German
Association for Gas and Water (DVGW) have had
been established in Europe.
The regulations are based on the following basic
prerequisites and principles:(1)
The knowledge of the UV resistance of
pathogens and indicator microorganisms relevantin water hygiene based on exactly controlled UV
inactivation laboratory studies(2)Standardized UV (duty) radiometers forthe surveillance of the irradiation process during
practical operation, measurement in W/m². Theseradiometers need to be annually controlled bymeans of a reference radiometer traceable to anational calibration office.
(3)
A full scale biodosimetric validation test
under well-defined operation conditions by
variation of water flow, UV-254 nm transmittanceof the water and the UV lamp power.

(4)
A UV-254 nm calibrated microorganism
serving as biodosimeter to measure the Reduction
Equivalent Fluence (J/m²) representing the
microbicidal effective UV fluence (dose).
After careful consideration and negotiations over
several years, a harmonization between theAustrian and German regulations has recently
been achieved. This facilitates from now on thetasks of waterworks operators, of the
manufacturers of UV devices and of theauthorities for the benefit of the drinking water
consumers.
The UV devices validated by the ÖNORM/DIN
standard offer a guaranteed UV-254 nm fluence ofat least 400 J/m² during operation. International
studies show that by applying this fluence a 4 to 6
log inactivation of the most relevant water-borne
pathogens is achieved. If the risk assessment of
the water supply system reveals the necessity ofenhanced inactivation conditions, e.g. if theoccurrence of adenoviruses must be expected, amulti-barrier disinfection is recommended. In thiscase, UV radiation is combined e.g. with a chlorine
dioxide treatment. In this way, the respective
advantages of each individual technique, the highpotential of UV radiation to inactivate protozoa
and the high virucidal efficiency of chlorine-based
disinfectants, can be perfectly combined.
However, it has to be pointed out, that an
application of UV irradiation below a REF of 400
J/m² cannot be recommended, since a fluence
below 400 J/m² is needed to overcome thephotoreactivation of bacteria. Repair of UVdamages and regaining infectivity of bacterial
pathogens would be the consequences.
Information on validation of UV devices by
biodosimetric measurement can be found:www.uv-team-austria.at
ReferencesÖNORM M 5873-1:2020 / DIN 19294-1:2020: Devices for thedisinfection of water using ultraviolet radiation Part 1:
Devices equipped with UV low pressure lamps - Requirements
and testing.
ÖNORM M 5873-3:2020 / DIN 19294-3:2020: Part 3:
Reference radiometers for devices equipped with UV low
pressure lamps - Requirements and testing.

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UV device under full scale biodosimeter investigation at the Water Test Center Wiental, Austria (Photo credit:
Thomas Haider)

European Geosciences
Union General
Assembly
Announcement- Article credit Regina Sommer

The next European Geosciences Union General
Assembly vEGU21: Gather Online (#vEGU21) willtake place entirely online from 19 to 30 April
2021.You are invited to submit abstracts to thefollowing session:
Session HS2.3.5: Fate and transport processes ofpathogens and emerging contaminants at
multiple scales
Invited Speaker: Liping Pang
Conveners: Julia Derx, Fulvio Boano, Jennifer
Drummond, Margaret Stevenson
This session aims to bring together communities
from hydrological, microbiological and chemical
sciences to increase the understanding about thedominant processes controlling faecal indicator,

pathogen and contaminant fate and transport atlarger scales. Consequently, we welcome
contributions that aim to close these knowledge
gaps and include both small and large-scale
experimental, with the focus on•
the fate and transport of faecal indicators,
pathogens and emerging contaminants inrivers, groundwater and estuaries•
Hydrological, physically based modelling
approaches•
Methods for identifying the dominant
processes and for transferring faecal
indicator, pathogen and contaminanttransport parameters from the laboratory to
the field or catchment scale•
Investigations of the implications ofcontamination of water resources for watersafety management planning and risk
assessment frameworks
For full details
see: https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EG
U21/session/39644 ; The deadline for abstract
submission is January 13, 2021
Instructions for abstract submission can be foundhere.

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Hygiene Quality of Natural Swimming Pools- Article credit: Susan Petterson and Nicholas Ashbolt
Natural swimming pools (NSP) (or ponds with no residual disinfectant) have become increasingly popular in
the last 20 years for both private and public use, however there are hygiene concerns over the fate of humanreleased enteric pathogens. In their most pure form, a natural swimming pond is an artificial poolconstructed for the purpose of recreational bathing, without any form of chemical disinfectant. Water is‘cleaned’ by pumping it through a series of natural or constructed biofilters and/or wetlands. In-situ
elimination of pathogens is assumed to occur by zooplankton predation, biofilm sorption/sedimentation
processes and natural solar radiation/UV inactivation.
The first public NSP in Canada was proposed for Edmonton’s Borden Park in 2015. Given that the proposed
design fell outside the existing regulatory conditions for swimming pools, Alberta Health commissioned ascreening level risk assessment in 2016 to explore the potential human health risks from faecal pathogens.
In collaboration with Nick Ashbolt and Qiaozhi Li at University of Alberta, we undertook a desktop risk
assessment based on the pool design and existing information in the literature. Our work has recently been
published in Water Research (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0043135420310368),
highlighting the many important unknowns associated with pathogen fate within natural systems.

Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool: Natural filtration system being established. Photo credit: City of Edmonton

In September 2019, Susan Petterson was Invited to present this research at the international convention of
the IOB (IOB is the international organization for natural bathing waters and is the umbrella organization for
swimming pond experts (https://iob-ev.com/) in Warsaw, Poland. There was a great deal of support fromthe group for the risk-based approach and the need for further scientific research on the hygienic quality ofbathing waters. Importantly, there is a need for natural disinfection barriers for swimming pools to berecognised within recreational water quality guidelines, with recommendations for assessing safety andmanaging bather risks.

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Catalan Surveillance
Network of SARS-CoV-2
in Sewage, interactive
map and free accessdatabase- Article credit: Rosina Girones

Susan presenting at the 10th International Swimming
Pond congress in Warsaw, Poland.

The pool in Edmonton has been open to the public
since July 2018 and is popular with the locals.
There are clear hygienic guidelines for users which
you can find on the pool’s website:
https://www.edmonton.ca/activities_parks_recre
ation/borden-park-outdoor-pool.aspx

Borden Park Natural Swimming Pool in use. photo
credit: Diego Romero CTV News Edmonton.ca Digital
Journalist (https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca)

Become an IWA member
Not yet a member and interested in joining IWA andspecifically HRWM? Then click on the link below andsee how you can become a member of this family.
http://www.iwa-network.org/membership.php

The Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA) is
coordinating the Catalan program for thesurveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage. The program
started in early July as an early warning tool toanticipate COVID-19 outbreaks in Catalonia. The
results on the concentration of viral gene markers
across the territory are provided in an online
platform (sarsaigua.icra.cat), discussed weekly
with the Public Health Agency of Catalonia(ASPCAT) and the Catalan Water Agency (ACA) andare used as a complementary indicator in thedecision-making process.
A total of 56 WWTPs serving 193 municipalities are
sampled throughout the country, representing 80%of the Catalan population. Territorial equilibrium isguaranteed by monitoring at least 1 WWTP per
county. Thirty-six WWTPs are sampled weekly and18 fortnightly. A 24-hour, flow-proportional
composite samples are collected at the entrance ofeach WWTP every Tuesday and send to referencelaboratories for the analysis of SARS-CoV-2 genetic
biomarkers, namely: i) the Laboratory of VirusesContaminants of Water and Food led by Prof. R.
Gironés (https://is.gd/rNmGr1 ); ii) the Laboratoryof Enteric Viruses led by Prof. A. Bosch(https://is.gd/GFSH7W) and iii) the Biotechnology
Area of EURECAT (https://is.gd/SFz7q4 ).
Weekly results on the concentration of SARS-CoV2 target genes in wastewater are visualized in theon-line platform developed ad-hoc by EURECAT incollaboration with ICRA (Figure 1). This platform
integrates both the data generated by thelaboratories and the metadata generated during
sampling. Data visualization includes an interactive
map of the sampled territory showing the level of_________Pg8

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SARS-CoV-2 prevalence in wastewater and detailed graphs with the concentration of different gene targets(N1, N2, and IP4) over time. All data are freely available for investigation purposes at the Zenodo on-line
repository (https://zenodo.org/record/4244774).

Figure 1: Visualization of results for the WWTP monitored by the surveillance program. Color
codes refer to the absolute concentration (in gene copies/L) of the most abundant genetic
marker reported weekly (from green (below limit of detection) to red (>5 log units)).
Available at https://sarsaigua.icra.cat.

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Getting to know the YWP Chapter from
Austria- Article credit: Anita Schandl, president of YWP Austria and Katalin Demeter, TU Wien and YWP committee member

A Brief History
The YWP Austria, founded in 2008, are a group of over 100 committed members from various
institutions and fields across the water sector. We offer a strong network and great opportunities tobroaden horizons. Workshops on a wide range of water topics are held twice a year. There theparticipants can exchange ideas, present their activities and talk to various water professionals. In
order to facilitate an informal exchange of ideas, excursions are organised once or twice a year, whilerelaxed get-togethers are held bi-monthly in three cities. Our national activities are complemented bybi-national workshops with neighbouring countries (Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary), as well as an
exchange with the mother organisation, the IWA Austria. We always look for opportunities to get toknow other national YWP chapters to discuss experiences and eventually build a strong cooperation.
You can contact us at ywp@a-iwa.at and read more about our activities at www.a-iwa.at/ywp, on
Facebook (Austrian Young Water Professionals) and Twitter (@YWPAustria) as well as using#YWPAustria.

Current board members of YWP Austria (left to right:
Anna Pomassl, Sarah Kudaya, Anita Schandl, Teresa
Garstenauer, Katharina Steinbacher). The board iselected every two years, with the next election
scheduled for November 2020.

Panel discussion and pub quiz: events during the 2019
HRWM Symposium
The 20th Symposium on Health-Related Water Microbiology was held in Vienna, Austria last year. We,
the Young Water Professionals Austria, were honoured and excited to be part of the organisingcommittee and to contribute two events to the rich programme of the conference. The Panel
Discussion on SDG6 “Clean water and sanitation” was part of the main programme. Our synthesis of
the conference abstracts’ relation to the SDG6 targets served as the basis of the discussion. The
audience participated in the lively debate via online voting. The YWP Evening started off with theexcitement and fun of a water-related pub quiz. The over 100 participants were assigned to teams_________Pg10
IWA HRWM NEWSHRW M NEW SLET T ER – D EC E M B ER 2 0 20

randomly, ensuring that everyone could meet new people. Long discussions and a lot of dancing
followed!

Panel Discussion on SDG6 “Clean water andsanitation”

The winning team of the Pub Quiz at theYWP Evening

Call for papers to a special issue “COVID-19 and water” in Journal of
Water and Health
COVID-19 is an infectious respiratory disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection. This special
issue will gather cutting-edge studies on the water-related health aspects of SARS-CoV-2
transmission including: characterizing the impact of WASH interventions on diseasetransmission; quantifying the occurrence and fate of SARS-CoV-2 in water andwastewater; and wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 to support public healthinterventions. Studies from low- and middle-income countries are specifically sought andsupported. Guest editors are Gertjan Medema (KWR, Netherlands), Eiji Haramoto(Yamanashi University, Japan), John Scott Meschke (University of Washington, USA), andSusan Petterson (Water & Health Pty Ltd and Griffith University, Australia). Publication
schedule is as follow:
Mar. 31, 2021: Due date for short manuscript proposal
July 31, 2021: Due date for the full manuscript
Oct. 2021: The first evaluation notification
Dec. 2021: Special Issue Publicationo_________Pg11
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Automated online monitoring of fecal
pollution in water by enzymatic methods – abrief overview- Article credit: Katalin Demeter, TU Wien and Dr. Andreas Farnleitner TU Wien and Karl Landsteiner
University Krems – ICC Water & Health, Austria
Since fecal pollution patterns may vary greatly on short temporal and spatial scales, the prompt
management of public health risks from water resources is a challenge. The fluorescence-based
detection of the enzymatic activity of ß-D-glucuronidase (GLUC) has been suggested as a rapid method
to monitor fecal pollution. New technological adaptations enable now its automated, near-real-timemeasurement in a robust and analytically precise manner. Large datasets of high temporal or spatial
resolution have been reported from a variety of freshwater resources, demonstrating the great
potential of this automated method. However, the fecal indication capacity of GLUC activity and thepotential link to health risk is still unclear, presenting considerable limitations. A recent review
published in Current Opinion in Environmental Science and Health provides a critical evaluation of
automated, online GLUC-based methods and their alternatives. It also defines open questions to besolved before the method can fully support water management. The review is a collaboration among
research groups that have extensive experience in the field: Professor Farnleitner’s and Professor
Kirschner’s groups at the ICC Water & Health in Austria (waterandhealth.at), Professor Zessner’s groupat the Institute for Water Quality and Resource Management at the TU Wien in Austria, and Dr. Burnet
at the Polytechnique Montreal in Canada.
Demeter, K., Burnet, J.-B., Stadler, P., Kirschner, A. K. T., Zessner, M., Farnleitner, A. H. (2020).
“Automated online monitoring of fecal pollution in water by enzymatic methods." Current Opinion in
Environmental Science & Health 16: 82-91; The article is freely available at:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coesh.2020.03.002

Automated GLUC activity measurements in an outdoor setup for online
monitoring with high resolution. Photo © Philipp Stadler.

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Potential applications of rapid online enzymatic methods for the detection of fecal pollution in water. Source:
Demeter et al., 2020, Curr Opin Environ Sci Health, 16: 82-91, Figure re-published under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
licence.

Ship-borne measurements of GLUC activity in nearreal-time for water quality mapping. Photo © Philipp
Stadler.

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Notification to HRWM Members- Management Committee Elections and Way Forward
In accordance with the HRWM SG constitution, the management committee (MC) elections areorganized in concurrently with our biennial HRWM symposium.
The Constitution reads as follows:•

The final decision of new MC members will be made at the closed MC meeting with MCmembers held at biennial HRWM Symposium.

•

The new MC members will be announced at the open meeting of the biennial HRWM
Symposium.

•

The term of each MC member is 4-years, chair and vice chair 2 years, secretary 4 years.

Due to the postponement of the HRWM symposium from September 2021 to September 2022, themanagement team together with the management committee considered two possible options: 1) To
plan and organise an electronic voting, or 2) to prolong the term of the MC and MT members.
With input from IWA Headquarters as well as the HRWM Conference organising committee for 2022,
the MT and the MC decided to prolong the term of the current MC members and for elections to takeplace in time with the HRWM Conference in 2022. Part of the decision was based on the stability thecurrent MC would provide to the Conference organising team.
We believe that we acted in the best interest of the SG as a whole.

Announcement- Seeking YWP Instagrammer to join Management
Committee
The Management Committee is seeking 2 – 3 YWP’s within the HRWM SG to fulfil certain roles within
the Management Committee to improve our Social Media activities. Members of the current
Management Committee and Management Team are already fulfilling some roles on our social media
platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, our website, as well as Facebook. The role of Instagrammer has
not been filled.
These roles are set out under the Social Media positions within our Constitution. We are therefore
keen to fill these positions by including a few individuals that fits certain criteria to our team. We are
seeking young dynamic individuals that have a passion for the work our SG does and that are familiar
with and keen to promote our SG via all social media platforms, but especially Instagram.
If you are interested to fill this position, and fits the criteria, please email your CV with a letter to:daisuke.sano.e1@tohoku.ac.jp_________Pg14
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IWA Head Office:Alliance House
12 Caxton Street
London SW1H 0QSUKIWA Global Operational Office:Leeghwaterplein 45
2521 DB The Hague
The Netherlands

Tel: +44 207 654 5500
Fax: +44 207 654 5555

Tel: +31 (70) 31 50 792
Fax: +31 (70) 34 77 005

General e-mail: water@iwahq.org
Membership e-mail: members@iwahq.org
Website: www.iwa-network.org
Company registered in England No. 3597005
Registered Charity (England) No. 1076690_________Pg15
IWA HRWM NEWS