Sewers, wastewater could be latest way we combat the spread of the coronavirus
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In the fight against the corona virusScientists have protected us both through testing and by promoting social distance. Another important tool is environmental monitoring, and one group focuses on our waste and sewage systems.
Peter Grevatt, CEO of the Water Research Foundation, told us how environmental monitoring of COVID-19 in wastewater could give us clues about fighting Resurgence of the disease.
Look at that:
Measuring coronavirus in wastewater could help …
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“Samples are collected at the wastewater treatment plant or can also be collected in the sewage system to provide information about other parts of what’s going on in the community,” said Grevatt.
These samples are being analyzed and can indicate the presence of RNA from the virus and the strength of this signal in the wastewater, said Grevatt. This strength could in turn show the trends in the appearance of COVID-19.
In some cases, coronavirus RNA was detected in a community wastewater before the first case in that community was clinically diagnosed.
“Wastewater treatment plants have very detailed maps of their wastewater system in the community, so if you want to determine, for example, whether there is an elevated signal in a particular district, you can go to the manhole to which you have access and collect that part of the wastewater system the sample there and find out something about that particular place, “said Grevatt.
You can find more information from our interview with Grevatt in the video embedded in this article.
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The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a doctor or other qualified healthcare provider if you have any questions about an illness or health goals.
