https://www.awa.asn.au/resources/latest-news/technology/innovation/polish-city-using-mussels-monitor-water-quality * Join user icon * Member Dashboard user icon * Contact us contact icon [ ] Skip to content Australian Water Association | 60 Years * Home * Membership Show submenu for Membership Plus icon Plus icon + Membership for me Show submenu for Membership for me Plus icon Plus icon ------------------------------------------------------------- o Branch committees o Specialist Networks o Young Water Professionals + Membership for my organisation Show submenu for Membership for my organisation Plus icon Plus icon ------------------------------------------------------------- o B2B o Digital Marketplace * About Us Show submenu for About Us Plus icon Plus icon + Who we are + Our History + Contact Us * Resources Show submenu for Resources Plus icon Plus icon + Latest Industry News + Current Magazine + Water e-Journal + Reconciliation Action Plan + Future of Water Report + Jobs Board + Careers in Water + Podcasts + Media + Past Papers * Events Show submenu for Events Plus icon Plus icon + Upcoming Events + Ozwater + Photo Gallery * Awards Show submenu for Awards Plus icon Plus icon + Awards Overview + Individual Member Awards + Chris Davis AM Fellowship + Guy Parker Award + Organisation Member Awards + Student Awards + Australian Stockholm Junior Water Prize + View Honour Roll * Programs Show submenu for Programs Plus icon Plus icon + International + Mentoring + National Water Week + ANZBP * Home * Membership Show submenu for Membership Plus icon Plus icon + Membership for me Show submenu for Membership for me Plus icon Plus icon ------------------------------------------------------------- o Branch committees o Specialist Networks o Young Water Professionals + Membership for my organisation Show submenu for Membership for my organisation Plus icon Plus icon ------------------------------------------------------------- o B2B o Digital Marketplace * About Us Show submenu for About Us Plus icon Plus icon + Who we are + Our History + Contact Us * Resources Show submenu for Resources Plus icon Plus icon + Latest Industry News + Current Magazine + Water e-Journal + Reconciliation Action Plan + Future of Water Report + Jobs Board + Careers in Water + Podcasts + Media + Past Papers * Events Show submenu for Events Plus icon Plus icon + Upcoming Events + Ozwater + Photo Gallery * Awards Show submenu for Awards Plus icon Plus icon + Awards Overview + Individual Member Awards + Chris Davis AM Fellowship + Guy Parker Award + Organisation Member Awards + Student Awards + Australian Stockholm Junior Water Prize + View Honour Roll * Programs Show submenu for Programs Plus icon Plus icon + International + Mentoring + National Water Week + ANZBP [icon-nav-h] [icon-nav-c] Resources > Latest News > Polish city using mussels monitor water quality This Polish city is using mussels to monitor water quality Dec 10, 2020 | 1 mins read User Icon by Cecilia Harris [] While all water professionals are aware of the delicate balance between human systems and biological indicators, the thought of relying on the mechanisms of mussels to safeguard a city's population from polluted drinking water takes trust in nature to new heights. The Debiec Water Treatment Plant in Poznan, Poland, employs the natural intelligence of mussels as sensors for water quality changes in the Warta River, the city's primary surface water supply. With a low tolerance for pollutants, mussels are well known for clamping their shells shut when water quality is poor. And the treatment plant has devised a hybrid sensory system by combining the pollution-detecting prowess of mussels with computer technology. Eight mussels with sensors glued to their shells work with a network of computers. If the water is clean, the mussels stay open; if the water becomes polluted, they close, signalling to the sensors that water quality is low. It's a handy mechanism for a notoriously polluted waterbody; the Warta River flows through some of the densest population areas in Poland, and some of the country's oldest industrial zones. Engineers at the Debiec Water Treatment Plant are alerted to water quality issues by the mussels, whose sensors work in conjunction with a computer system that monitors parameters tracked via artificial sensors. And while the system has been designed to take into account possible changes in the mussels behaviour, if four mussels close simultaneously, the system shuts down automatically. According to ZMEScience, the AquaNES project -- supported by the European Union with the aim of integrating nature-based elements into water management systems -- has been researching indicator organisms. "Using an organism as an indicator (bioindicator) cannot be accidental. It requires extensive field research that aims to accurately characterise natural occurrence conditions," writes AquaNES. "The best indicator organisms are those that have specific life requirements, i.e. they have a narrow ecological (occurrence) scale. This means that a number of different factors will limit their vital functions or even eliminate them from the environment." The hard-working mussels have been celebrated in the documentary film, Gruba Kaska, directed by Julia Pelka, which explores the use of biological indicators to service human systems. "By making this film I wanted to show man's dependence on nature. I thought it was brilliant that humans are using mussels to create a warning system against danger," Pelka said. "They use the clams' senses to protect themselves from the dangers of modern civilisation. You could say that people use them as protection from themselves." 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