We sampled sewage sludge from 13 wastewater treatment plants across three states. We found every resident adds microplastics to farmland, in dried sewage sludge (biosolids) used as fertiliser.
We detected 180 contaminants in treated and untreated water. None of those found in treated water breached human health guidelines, but we should not forget about potential impacts on the environment.
The COVID-19 pandemic has seen an increase in wastewater testing to monitor the spread of the virus. But historical cases show that targeted surveillance can further marginalize vulnerable populations.
Over 800 sites across the US report coronavirus data from sewage to the CDC. Here’s how this kind of surveillance system works and what it can and can’t tell you.
Without genome sequencing, we would be blind to new variants of COVID-19. As Omicron surges in New Zealand, the sequencing focus is shifting to learning about what causes severe or long-term disease.
Aaron Hinz, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa y Rees Kassen, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa
As we move through the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, new predictive methods of testing can help monitor the spread of the disease. Environmental testing, like swabbing floors, is a useful tool.
As the world waits for vaccines against COVID-19, testing wastewater can give communities and smaller locales, such as school districts, valuable signals about infections trends.
Sewage surveillance is one technique that can alert authorities to the presence of a pathogen in the community. An environmental engineer explains the state of the science when it comes to SARS-CoV-2.
The government plans to monitor sewage for the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. And while this holds promise to tracking future local outbreaks, there are also some sticky ethical questions to consider.