Microbiology: A Systems Approach 4th Edition by Marjorie Kelly Cowan

Exercise 42

Critical thinking is the ability to reason and solve problems using facts and concepts. These questions can be approached from a number of angles and, in most cases, they do not have a single correct answer.
Every year, supposedly safe municipal water supplies cause outbreaks of enteric illness.
a. Using the Wisconsin outbreak example from the 1990s, explain how pathogens can slip through the processes of water analysis and treatment undetected and untreated.
b. Looking at process figure 25.1, discuss how bioterrorists could target municipal water supplies and what pathogens would be utilized for this type of dispersal.
Figure 25.1: The major steps in water purification and sewage treatment.