About Wastewater Monitoring
During the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater monitoring has proven an effective tool for tracking COVID-19 infections across an entire community. Since November 2020, researchers at UC Davis and Stanford University have been collaborating on a project to monitor wastewater in the City of Davis for COVID-19.
Wastewater samples at the city’s treatment plant are collected daily and analyzed for genetic material of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. People who are infected shed genetic material in their stool, at times before they show symptoms or even if they never feel ill. Data from wastewater samples is used to inform public health guidance and actions to prevent the spread of COVID-19. For example, wastewater monitoring can supplement community infection data as case counts from at-home tests become difficult to track.
Over time, this important work has expanded to more communities, which now includes wastewater testing for influenza, RSV and, most recently, monkeypox (MPOX). You can learn more about the partnership efforts supporting wastewater monitoring here and here.
You can view the MPOX data for Davis here.
