testing for Giardia Lambia along the AT

[Panzer1]

theory: set up collection points along the AT where hikers that use only ceramic filters can have their ceramic filters cleaned out by specially trained laboratory personnel. The contents of the clean-out can then be examined for Giardia Lambia and other microbes.

The ceramic filters will concentrate contaminants on the surface of the ceramic. The contaminants will be from a far ranging number of water sources along the trail. Hikers who participate would be instructed in advance to not open their filters on their own. Only lab personnel will open the filters.

The advantage of this approach is that the hikers are the ones doing the walking and collecting. The lab people who do the testing never need to go outside. That's what makes this approach so practical.

This test should tell you if there is Giardia Lambia in water sources along the trail, and how much of it there is. It won't tell you exactly where is is though.

Panzer

[rsmout]

Good idea, but you would have to rely on the hikers to tell you where they filtered water, and then you would have the problem of which source or sources were contaminated. Another way to do it is read trailjournals.com and track entries where hikers were reporting gastrointestinal issues. You could then backtrack to likely sources and take samples there. But it requires the testers to hit the trail...

[Spokes]

Here's one better- Hikers using ceramic filters get a brand new one and the old one gets bagged, tagged, and sent away for analysis.

Anybody good at grant writing?

Alternative study 1- free testing for Lyme disease along the trail especially in the New England sections.

Alternative study 2- Hantavirus swabs.......

Alternative study 3- testing food bags (GORP) for e. coli.......

Golly Panzer1 we could go on forever or just hike.

[Panzer1]

Good idea, but you would have to rely on the hikers to tell you where they filtered water, and then you would have the problem of which source or sources were contaminated. Another way to do it is read trailjournals.com and track entries where hikers were reporting gastrointestinal issues. You could then backtrack to likely sources and take samples there. But it requires the testers to hit the trail...

We don't really care exactly which water sources were contaminated since the contaminated sources will change from day to day every time an animal takes a crap.

We just need to know that a certain stretch of trail has Giardia, and how much, so hikers can be better informed.

The reason why this approach is practical is because it doesn't require testers to hit the trail.

Panzer