A critical review is given of the overall subject of bacteriological water quality control procedures, criteria and standards and their epidemiological basis, considering the adoption by the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration (FWPCA) in 1967 of numerical fecal coliform values as ceiling standards. Attention is focused on the nonurban sources from which bacterial index organisms and most other stream water constituents predominantly originate. The restrictive term enteric disease is used because the bacterial index organism standards under review are enteric organisms which are not normally present in any other animal excretions.