Wastewater reuse, reclamation and recycling may provide beneficial strategies to manage limited water resources. However, insufficient treatment of municipal wastewater poses potential risk to environmental and public health regarding incidences of viral pathogens. The reduction of pathogenic microorganisms is essential to minimize human health risk associated with the reuse of wastewater. The United States Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing the use of coliphages as a potential indicator organism of fecal contamination in recreational waters. Coliphages are viruses than infect enteric coliform bacteria, and are consistently present in domestic wastewaters. They are similar in size and shape to human enteric viruses, and are more resistant to removal by disinfection than enteric bacteria. As such, they have long been proposed as indicators of fecal pollution. However, traditional bacterial indicators (i.e. Escherichia coli) are not reliable indicators for viral pathogens. Monitoring viral pathogens and utilizing the most sufficient wastewater treatment technologies are necessary to minimize public health risk associated with exposure. It is therefore of interest to better understand the removal of coliphages by sewage treatment processes.

The reduction of pathogenic microorganisms is essential to minimize human health risks associated with the reuse, reclamation, and recycling of wastewater and the land application of biosolids (sewage sludge). The most advanced treatment technologies, as well as, the most representative methods and indicator organisms are necessary to ensure public safety. The goal of this dissertation is to assess advanced Bardenpho wastewater treatment technologies in regards to virus removal, suggest the most appropriate viral indicators of human fecal contamination and/or treatment process controls, and develop an updated method for enumerating Ascaris ova viability in land applied biosolids. Appendix A evaluates the incidence of 11 different virus types in sewage throughout a 12-month time period, and their subsequent reduction via advanced Bardenpho treatment processes. This study showed that wastewater treatment facilities utilizing advanced Bardenpho for secondary treatment are more effective at reducing viruses in wastewater than facilities utilizing conventional aeration basin and trickling filter processes. Appendix B develops a new method for determining the viability of Ascaris ova in land applied biosolids. In this method, early development stages prior to larval-development, are included in the estimation of potential viability. Comparisons between viability enumerations suggests that the conventional microscopy method, in which only ova containing motile larva are considered viable, underestimates the number of eggs that may progress to an infectious stage. Whereas, the method based on early-to-late stage development, considers the potential viability of all eggs, providing a more conservative approach.