Fecal bacterial contamination and physicochemical parameters variation near shellfish zones and a hotspot point in Bou-Ismail Bay (Algeria)

Coastal water quality is an important parameter that directly influences human health (bathing and shellfish consumption). In this study, we assessed the surface water quality of three stations in Bou-Ismail Bay (central Algerian) to determine its potential impact on marine aquaculture. During the study period, a significant difference was recorded for salinity (30.35 − 36.06 psu) and suspended particulate matter (SPM) (35.04 − 73.53 mg/l). Ammonium ranged from 0.88 to 76.66 μM. Nitrite and nitrate varied from 0.08 to 2.6 μM and 0.29 to 7.58 μM, respectively, while phosphate varied from 0.11 to 2.31 μM. The enumeration of fecal coliform (FC) and enterococci (ENT) showed that S1 station is the most contaminated. PCA of the datasets highlighted the generation of two groups of sampling stations: the first group underlines S2 and S3 stations characterized by a low level of pollution independent of temporal variations. The second group presented S1 station was highly polluted and indiscriminately fluctuated over time. Our findings showed that more intensive water quality monitoring programs should be particularly addressed in shellfish areas.