Detection of industrial pollutants and toxic chemical wastes in sewage treatment plant influents by use of a biological monitor.

Heterogeneous mixtures of toxic chemical wastes affecting the normal operations of a sewage treatment facility employing anaerobic digestion were detected by dark-field observation of uncoordinate flagellar orientation patterns displayed by cells of Spirillum volutans. These results were compared with plant parameters determined by gas production, volatile fatty acids, and alkalinity measurements.