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Looking to Reopen, Colleges Become Labs for Coronavirus Tests and Tracking Apps

/in , , /by /The New York Timesby Matt Richtel

Thousands of students returning to the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York this month are being asked to wear masks in public, register their health status online each day and electronically log classroom visits for contact tracing if a coronavirus outbreak occurs. But the most novel effort at the school to measure and limit virus spread will require little effort and come quite naturally.

Students need only use the bathroom.

At more than 15 dormitories and on-campus apartment buildings, sewage is being tested twice weekly for genetic evidence of virus shed in feces. This provides a kind of early-warning system of an outbreak, limiting the need to test every student for Covid-19. If the disease is found in sewage, individual tests can be administered to identify the source.

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A Quick, Cost-Effective Method to Track the Spread of COVID-19 Through Untreated Wastewater

/in , , /by /Smart Water Magazineby Hokkaido University

A group of researchers have demonstrated that, from seven methods commonly used to test for viruses in untreated wastewater, an adsorption-extraction technique can most efficiently detect SARS-CoV-2. This gives us another tool to detect the presence and spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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How LA’s Sewers Could Be an Early Warning System for Coronavirus Outbreaks

/in , , /by /NBC4 Los Angelesby Carolyn Johnson and Maya MacGregor

A study at USC is relying on the flush of a toilet for clues to coronavirus outbreaks.

Dr. Adam Smith, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at USC, is a part of a team of scientists across the country who are sifting through data from the bowels of the sewer system.  The team consists of researchers from USC, Howard University, North Carolina State University and Rice University.

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Groundbreaking Study: Earth Will Warm 4.9 to 7 Degrees F

/in , , /by /E&E Newsby Chelsea Harvey

How much warming will greenhouse gas emissions cause in the coming years? It’s one of the most fundamental questions about climate change — and also one of the trickiest to answer.

Now, a major study claims to have narrowed down the range of possible estimates.

It presents both good and bad news. The worst-case climate scenarios may be somewhat less likely than previous studies suggested. But the best-case climate scenarios — those assuming the least amount of warming — are almost certainly not going to happen.

It’s “the most important climate science paper that’s come out in several years,” according to climate scientist Andrew Dessler of Texas A&M University, who was not involved with the study.

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Hundreds of U.S. Cities Testing Sewage for Early Signs of Coronavirus Hotspots

/in , , /by /Forbesby Alexandra Sternlicht

Local officials in Oregon, California, New York, Utah, Florida and many other places are collecting sewage samples to test for coronavirus, which experts say could allow for detection of hotspots for the disease before the diagnosis of clinical cases.

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As Potential Mega-Drought Looms, Stanford Researchers Explore Desalination System

/in , , /by /ABC 7 Newsby Dan Ashley & Tim Didion

Researchers at Stanford are working on a technology that may be needed more than ever over the next decade, especially if new predictions are accurate. Researchers have recently warned of a potential mega-drought in the western United States – conditions so dry that our drinking water supplies could be facing historic pressures. Experts say keeping the taps flowing could require a patchwork of solutions, including potentially increasing the use of desalination, turning saltwater into drinking water.

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How Your Poop is Being Used in the Fight Against COVID-19

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Lyndsay Winkley

Scientist have found an unexpected ally in the fight against COVID-19 — a tool so powerful, it might help zero in on coronavirus outbreaks before they happen.

It’s your poop.

The science of sewer surveillance, also called wastewater epidemiology, is being harnessed by the largest university in the county to help stay on top of COVID-19 cases among students.

And while San Diego is not actively using feces to try and predict COVID-19 hot spots, the city is participating in several studies to better understand this potential monitoring technique.

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As Some States Reopen, Studying Sewage Could Help Stop the Coronavirus Pandemic

/in , , /by /USA Today Networkby Dinah Voyles Pulver

In hundreds of cities across the USA, scientists hope monitoring systems will provide an early warning if coronavirus infections reemerge as communities in some states cautiously reopen.

These monitors don’t rely on testing patients or tracing contacts.

All that’s required? Human waste.

Over the past few months, private companies and university researchers have partnered with communities to collect sewage at treatment plants and test it for the presence of the novel coronavirus. The results are reported to municipal governments and state health officials to help them monitor the situation.

Testing wastewater can reveal evidence of the coronavirus and show whether it’s increasing or decreasing in a community, said Ian Pepper, a professor and co-director of the University of Arizona’s Water and Energy Sustainable Technology Center, one of the groups tracking the virus through different municipal sewage systems.

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Poop Tests in Sewage Might Predict Coronavirus Surge

/in , , /by /The Orange County Registerby Martin Wisckol

Scientists across the nation are examining Southern California’s poop — maybe even yours — with the hope of more quickly identifying COVID-19 hotspots and better preparing for future surges. The information could also signal when stay-at-home orders can be safely eased in specific communities.

Untreated sewage has been used for years to track viruses as well as to analyze opioid use by neighborhood. Now the race is on to determine whether it can serve as an early warning system for the new coronavirus, particularly since the small fraction of the population receiving swab tests cannot capture the breadth of asymptomatic infections.

“Testing of every individual is very difficult. But if you have 50,000 people in a community, you may be able to determine the prevalence by testing the wastewater,” said Sunny Jiang, a microbiologist leading a pilot project at UC Irvine to identify COVID-19 in sewage systems.

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Virus Prompts California to Study Air Pollution, Public Health

/in , /by /Bloomberg Lawby Emily C. Dooley

California regulators are seizing on a chance to study the public health effects of air pollution, as stay-at-home orders and drops in freight traffic related to the coronavirus pandemic have presented a unique research opportunity.

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