Relationship Between Microbiological and Physicochemical Parameters in Water Bodies in Urabá, Colombia

The presence of pathogens, toxic substances, and excess nutrients in rivers is due to the combination of industrial, agricultural, and livestock farming activities, as well as the absence of wastewater treatment plants and sewerage networks. River degradation is the result of these factors. The results from four water quality monitoring, carried out between November 2023 and August 2024, in the rivers of northern Urabá are pre-sented in this paper, and the relationships between physicochemical and microbiolog-ical parameters are assessed. Water samples from 16 sites, upstream, downstream and within urban centers, as well as at the mouths of the Hobo, Zapata, and Damaquiel rivers, and two water bodies flowing into the coastal lagoon of Bahía El Uno are pre-sented. The results revealed elevated content coliforms exceeding permissible Colom-bian standards and indicate that urban discharges increase microbial loads and induce degradation of conditions in the study area.