Evaluation of microbiological parameters of wastewater from filtration fields of a milk processing plant

Milk processing plants are a constant source of environmental pollution, as their wastewater contains microorganisms of varying degrees of pathogenicity. At the same time, they are natural biocatalysts capable of launching biological processes of wastewater treatment with any content of organic pollutants. Therefore, it is an important task to continuously monitor the basic microbiological parameters in wastewater in order to take timely measures to reduce the bioecological burden on environmental components. The article presents the results of the analysis of microbiological parameters of wastewater from filtration fields. There is the greatest quantitative diversity of coliphages, thermotolerant coliform bacteria, common coliform bacteria, pathogenic enterobacteria of the genera Salmonella and Shigella, the total microbial number, and fungi of wastewater of the first filtration field map. It suggests that the longer the period of wastewater in the filtration field maps, the lower the indicators of microbiological contamination. In addition, it was revealed that the water temperature of the industrial wastewater of the filtration fields of a milk processing plant influence significantly the qualitative and quantitative composition of microorganisms: the lower the temperature, the lower the content of microorganisms. Thus, thermotolerant coliform bacteria in the summer period accounted for a maximum amount of 800 CFU/100 ml, which is 38.8% more than in a similar sample in the autumn. The smallest number of thermotolerant coliform bacteria which amounted to 200 CFU/100 ml was found at a wastewater temperature of +8˚C in October at the second control point, As a result, the comparison of the microbiological parameters of wastewater from filtration field maps with the hygienic standard formed the basis for deciding on the choice and development of a method for additional wastewater treatment at the enterprise.