Long-term impact of basin-wide wastewater management on faecal pollution levels along the entire Danube River.

The Danube River is, at 2857 km, the second longest river in Europe and the most international river in the world with 19 countries in its catchment. Along the entire river, faecal pollution levels are mainly influenced by point-source emissions from treated and untreated sewage of municipal origin under base-flow conditions. In the past 2 decades, large investments in wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure were made in the European Union (EU) Member States located in the Danube River Basin (DRB).

Setback distances between small biological wastewater treatment systems and drinking water wells against virus contamination in alluvial aquifers.

Contamination of groundwater by pathogenic viruses from small biological wastewater treatment system discharges in remote areas is a major concern. To protect drinking water wells against virus contamination, safe setback distances are required between wastewater disposal fields and water supply wells. In this study, setback distances are calculated for alluvial sand and gravel aquifers for different vadose zone and aquifer thicknesses and horizontal groundwater gradients.

Development of the bacterial compartment along the Danube River: a continuum despite local influences.

Microbial food webs dominate heterotrophic food webs in large rivers with bacterial metabolism being a key component of carbon processing. Thus, analysis of bacterial population dynamics is critical to understanding patterns and mechanisms of material cycling and energy fluxes in large rivers. Within the frame of the Joint Danube Survey (JDS) 2007, the longitudinal development of the natural bacterial community in the Danube in terms of bacterial numbers, morphotype composition, and heterotrophic production of the suspended and particle-attached fractions was followed at a fine spatial resolution of approximately 30 km for the first time in such a large river along a 2,600-km stretch.

Microbiological water quality along the Danube River: integrating data from two whole-river surveys and a transnational monitoring network.

The River Danube is, with 2780 km, the second longest river in Europe. Its catchment area covers 801 500 km(2), with approximately 81 million inhabitants in 19 countries. River water for anthropogenic use, transportation and recreation is of major importance in all of these countries.

Longitudinal changes in the bacterial community composition of the Danube River: a whole-river approach.

The Danube River is the second longest river in Europe, and its bacterial community composition has never been studied before over its entire length. In this study, bacterial community composition was determined by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis of PCR-amplified portions of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene from a total of 98 stations on the Danube River (73 stations) and its major tributaries (25 stations), covering a distance of 2,581 km. Shifts in the bacterial community composition were related to changes in environmental conditions found by comparison with physicochemical parameters (e.