Interview I. Wall, J. Gelman and G.J. Medema - Israel hunts down coronavirus in city sewage systems

“Beneath the bustling streets of Israeli cities, machines hidden away inside sewage pipes are tracking coronavirus outbreaks before residents even fall sick. “Once there is a surge in these sensors, we know that this area is infected,” said Israel Wall, from wastewater management company Kando. Standing over a nondescript manhole in Kiryat Malakhi, a town in southern Israel, the engineer points out wires dropping into the darkness. “You can identify it without the population even knowing about it,” he said of samples taken from sewage pipes which are tested for coronavirus.
Israel has experienced record infection rates in recent weeks, with the Health Ministry reporting more than 1.5 million cases in January. The true infection rate is likely to be significantly higher for the population of 9.4 million, with about 26 per cent of PCR tests returning positive during the last week of January. To try to give a more accurate overview of the nation’s health, wastewater samples are being taken and tested for coronavirus. Whether a person knows they are infected or not, they are unwittingly providing a sample every time they use the toilet.”

(Citation: Scammell, R. – Interview I. Wall, J. Gelman and G.J. Medema – Israel hunts down coronavirus in city sewage systems – www.thenationalnews.com (2022)10 February)