Michael E. Ferris
Current Organizations / Institutes
The organizations/institutes from the scholar's latest article
Research Subjects
Research Interests
Michael E. Ferris has a total of 3 co-authors. Here are the top co-authors by number of shared publications:
- Jeremy A. Corrigan
Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services - Public Health
1 shared publication - Jill C. Roberts
Center for Global Health and Infectious Disease Research, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA
1 shared publication - Steven R. Butkus
State of California, North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, 5550 Skylane Blvd., Santa Rosa, CA 95403, USA
1 shared publication
Latest Publications
- Open Access
- 27 June 2021
- Published by MDPI AG in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
- Vol. 18 (13) , 6901
Microbial Source Tracking Approach to Investigate Fecal Waste at the Strawberry Creek Watershed and Clam Beach, California, USA
Clam Beach is located in Northern California, USA, and is listed as an impaired waterway by the federal government. The scope of this study was to investigate this beach and surrounding watershed to determine, if possible, the source of the impairment by conducting an 11-h beach study and 8-week watershed study. We used traditional fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) and microbial source tracking (MST) methods to help identify source(s) of the FIB. Our study was focused on four possible contributors: human, ruminant, canine, and bird. A total of 169 samples were collected, analyzed, and compared to the California Department of Health single sample maximum (SSM) objective. In the beach study, 29 (44%) samples exceeded at least one SSM objective, which would have resulted in a resample per state regulations for recreational primary contact use. MST methods showed that the most abundant marker detected was bird, in 65% of the samples, but varied by sample location, which is likely due to a natural population of nearshore birds regularly observed along Clam Beach. The watershed study highlighted the potential influence from ruminants throughout the region, while humans did not appear to be a significant contributor. Health risk to humans appears to be low.
- 27 June 2021
- Published by MDPI AG in International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
- Vol. 18 (13) , 6901
Open AccessMicrobial Source Tracking Approach to Investigate Fecal Waste at the Strawberry Creek Watershed and Clam Beach, California, USA
Clam Beach is located in Northern California, USA, and is listed as an impaired waterway by the federal government. The scope of this study was to investigate this beach and surrounding watershed to determine, if possible, the source of the impairment by conducting an 11-h beach study and 8-week watershed study. We used traditional fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) and microbial source tracking (MST) methods to help identify source(s) of the FIB. Our study was focused on four possible contributors: human, ruminant, canine, and bird. A total of 169 samples were collected, analyzed, and compared to the California Department of Health single sample maximum (SSM) objective. In the beach study, 29 (44%) samples exceeded at least one SSM objective, which would have resulted in a resample per state regulations for recreational primary contact use. MST methods showed that the most abundant marker detected was bird, in 65% of the samples, but varied by sample location, which is likely due to a natural population of nearshore birds regularly observed along Clam Beach. The watershed study highlighted the potential influence from ruminants throughout the region, while humans did not appear to be a significant contributor. Health risk to humans appears to be low.