COVID-19 Updates News Contamination Water Issues
Maps give overview of wastewater-based epidemiology in Canada

The COVID-19 Wastewater Coalition has developed two maps to help Canadians understand where wastewater-based epidemiology is already underway and/or being applied in Canada.

Over the past year, researchers around the world have been testing wastewater for the presence of COVID-19 infection in the community. Work is now underway in more than 50 countries at over 2,000 sites, as captured by COVIDPoops19. Researchers in Canada are monitoring SARS-CoV-2 (and variants of the virus) in community wastewater samples to increase our understanding of community spread during the third wave and as vaccinations increase.

We need to understand where wastewater-based epidemiology is already underway and/or being applied in Canada. The COVID-19 Wastewater Coalition, as part of the Canadian Water Network, has developed two maps that can serve as a stepping stone in building a more detailed national picture:

Map #1: Wastewater sampling and analysis of SARS-CoV-2 in Canada

Map #2: Canadian Labs conducting wastewater analysis for SARS-CoV-2

The Coalition maps provide a snapshot from early May 2021 of the Canadian Water Network’s knowledge about where publicly disclosed work is ongoing. To help further stimulate discussion about the potential merits and uses of the data, the maps include some subjective determinations by the CWN as to the nature of the work relative to its role in public health decision-making.

For more information, updates, comments or corrections, contact wastewatercoalition@cwn-rce.ca.