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SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Surveillance by USEPA/ORD to Support the Ohio Wastewater Monitoring Network
Citation:
Brinkman, N., E. Varughese, AND J. Garland. SARS-CoV-2 Wastewater Surveillance by USEPA/ORD to Support the Ohio Wastewater Monitoring Network. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, 2024.
Impact/Purpose:
Wastewater surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 can complement individual testing information and provide public health officials with a more comprehensive assessment of community prevalence of COVID-19. In collaboration with the Ohio Department of Health, and several other partners, wastewater from 72 utilities in OH are being monitored to assess weekly trends in SARS-CoV-2 concentrations. These data are being used by state public health officials and will be incorporated into CDC’s National Wastewater Surveillance System for eventual public consumption. In the short term, this surveillance tool is providing information to aid in the public health response to the pandemic and may be used beyond the current need for community level screening of other infectious diseases and antibiotic resistance.
Description:
Environmental surveillance of wastewater can be used as a tool to monitor the circulation of SARS-CoV-2, and the spread of COVID-19, in communities. In collaboration with the Ohio Department of Health, the Ohio Water Resources Center, the Ohio EPA and various university and commercial labs, we are actively monitoring wastewater from utilities in Ohio as part of a statewide wastewater surveillance plan to aid in determining public health responses. At present, wastewater is being collected twice weekly from approximately 70 utilities in Ohio. Our USEPA/ORD lab is processing samples from 11 of the sites and reporting SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentrations for inclusion in the Ohio Coronavirus Wastewater Monitoring Network COVID-19 Dashboard. This data is being used by the Ohio Department of health as one of many metrics to determine public health advisory levels and responses.
URLs/Downloads:
SARS-COV-2 WASTEWATER SURVEILLANCE BY USEPA-ORD TO SUPPORT THE OHIO WASTEWATER MONITORING NETWORK.PDF (PDF, NA pp, 885.503 KB, about PDF)https://data.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/data/view/covid-19-reporting
