Coliform bacteria have long been used to indicate fecal contamination of food, water, and solid surfaces, and thus the presence of a health hazard. In this study, the in-mill water and external effluent treatment systems of seven typical Canadian pulp and paper mills were shown to support the growth of numerous coliforms, especially Klebsiella spp, Escherichia coli, Enterobacter spp., and Citrobacter spp . Mill coliforms were shown to be not just simple transients from feedwater or furnish (wood), but to be continuously growing, especially in the primary clarifiers. Therefore, coliforms and fecal coliforms cannot be used as fecal contamination indicators in pulp and paper mill water and effluent treatment systems. / N2-fixing coliform populations were detected in mill water systems and were analyzed using N2-fixation assays and nitrogenase gene (nifH) probing. Both active in situ populations and cultured microbial isolates were tested. Active N2-fixation was demonstrated in six primary clarifiers. Measurement of the numbers and composition of the total culturable bacterial community in a primary clarifier revealed that approximately 50% of all aerobic cells contained nifH , of which >90% were Klebsiella. Coliforms growing on MacConkey agar plates from the primary clarifier were all identified as Klebsiella and 100% of these Klebsiella contained the nifH gene. Preliminary estimates indicate that the amount of N2 fixed per day is substantial in some clarifiers.

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