2. Normative continuity

Microbiological monitoring of water is based on the identification and enumeration of target micro-organisms, mostly bacteria.

Numerous microbiological methods for the detection and enumeration of bacteria have been developed and are now widely used on a routine basis. For each method, the choice of culture medium and incubation conditions, as well as the nature of the sample and the quality of the sampling, have an influence on bacterial isolation and enumeration. All these conditions confer variable precision on microbiological examination, and have led to the need to harmonize analytical methods in laboratories by establishing standards (reference, routine or validated commercial methods).

The use of standardized methods is of paramount importance in standardizing microbiological water quality criteria from one laboratory to another,...