Corona virus in the waste water: Cottbus secret health monitoring!

Corona virus in the waste water: Cottbus secret health monitoring!

Cottbus, Deutschland - The monitoring of the Corona viruses in the waste water continues! Even after the official end of the pandemic, it is diligently measured in Cottbus to determine the virus load in the wastewater. Tino Schmidt from Lausitzer Wasser Gesellschaft (LWG) explains that the sampling has been taken since November 2023. A rehearsal is removed twice a week and sent to the laboratory to analyze the current situation regarding the Coronavirus and Influenza virus.

The samples are taken with an automatic 24-hour sample person who monitors the wastewater quality. Schmidt emphasizes that the virus load in waste water often increases faster than the signs of illness among humans. This means that citizens can be informed in good time in order to take their own safety precautions. "Everyone can draw conclusions about whether they put on a mask or not," says Schmidt.

important knowledge and future plans

The Amelag project, in which over 160 sewage treatment plants in Germany take part, is currently concentrating on Corona and influenza viruses. Schmidt explains that the results do not indicate the number of sick people, but only reflect the general virus load. There is currently a slightly increasing trend in Corona in Cottbus, while the influenza virus load remains very low.

The LWG carries out its own measurements before the analysis by the Robert Koch Institute to ensure that the samples are in the normal range. The project is financed by the end of the year, but the future remains uncertain because the approval is still pending for a sequel. Schmidt points out that a new EU directive is being planned that stipulates that sewage treatment plants must be examined for resistant pathogens. This could change the wastewater surveillance significantly in the coming years.