Results Dashboard

Background
Reporting of Results
Strategy
Workflow
Sewersheds
Wastewater System Operators
Related Links
Contact Information

Background

The virus that causes covid-19 is known as SARS-CoV-2. People with covid-19 can shed this virus in their stool whether they have symptoms, have no symptoms, have had a covid-19 test, or were never diagnosed. Monitoring municipal wastewater for the virus that causes covid-19 allows for the detection of the virus in a large population and can provide an early warning of positive and asymptomatic cases of covid-19 in the community and possible outbreaks. Wastewater monitoring consistently captures most of the population with covid-19 given that everyone goes to the washroom. Wastewater monitoring can serve as a tool for mass public health surveillance and can assist in directing public health guidance.

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Reporting of Results

The results of municipal wastewater surveillance for covid-19 can be viewed in a web mapping application developed by ESRI Canada. The COVID-19 Wastewater Mapping Application (featured in the top line of this page) allows viewing of the locations of wastewater sampling, the associated sewersheds for these locations and the results of the sampling. Selecting a sampling location of interest in the application (from the list on the left) provides information on the most recent sample collected as well as historical levels of covid-19 in wastewater samples in graph format.

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Strategy

COVID-19 Wastewater Surveillance Strategy

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Workflow

Sample is collected from the municipal wastewater system, typically from a wastewater treatment plant before any treatment occurs.
Sample is shipped to a laboratory.
Sample is prepared and virus RNA is quantified using PCR analysis.
Results as gene copies/mL are sent to the Department.
Results are reported via the Results Dashboard.

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Sewersheds

A sewershed is an area of land where all the sewers connected to residential homes, institutions and businesses discharge to a common outfall. Sewersheds monitored for the virus that causes covid-19 in Newfoundland and Labrador to date include: