Caracterización microbiológica de las principales playas de la ciudad de Manta.

Abstract

There are few studies that evaluate the microbial quality of water on the beaches of the city of Manta. Although there is information based on the Most Probable Number (MPN) technique, there are no investigations that report concentrations in terms of Colony Forming Units (CFU). The present investigation aims to evaluate the bacteriological quality of seawater at 21 points selected along the coastal profile of the city of Manta, by detecting microorganisms that indicate contamination such as coliforms and Escherichia coli using reagents with Compact Dry EC chromogenic media. The results indicate that the samples taken at Los Esteros and Tarquí beaches exceed the permitted concentrations of microorganisms, making them unsuitable for recreational activities such as swimming. Unlike El Murciélago and Barbasquillo beaches, which exhibited considerably low levels, recording averages below 100 CFU/ml, El Bata stands out as the best quality beach in this study.