this is particularly of concern where contaminated water resources are used for municipal water supply crop irrigation and for recreational purposes amirat et al furthermore microbial contaminants from wastewater can exacerbate biodiversity loss european commission despite the investment in and establishment of wastewater treatment plants many developed nations still suffer from microbial contamination due to sewage spills and diffuse agricultural pollution particularly during high rainfall events when combined sewer overflows operate more frequently and runoff from agriculture is induced