All across the country, counties, colleges and other communities are now testing sewage to monitor the spread of the novel coronavirus. According to experts, COVID-19 can show up in wastewater about a week before people even show symptoms.
A sewage-based coronavirus test could be an “easy win” that would pick up infection spikes up to 10 days earlier than with existing medical-based tests.
Scientists led by UK’s Centre for Ecology and Hydrology are working on a standardised test to “count” the amount of coronavirus in a wastewater sample.
“The earlier you find [a signal], the earlier an intervention can happen,” says lead researcher Dr Andrew Singer.
“That means lives will be made much more liveable in the current crisis.”
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
