Lab testing (Stock photo 113088572 © Andrei Rahalski | Dreamstime.com)

By Pete McIntyre

sample collection

Wastewater testing expands to Interior Health

Jan 20, 2023 | 4:00 PM

The COVID-19 wastewater surveillance program has expanded, and data is now available from communities in Interior and Island Health.

Samples in Interior Health are being collected in Kelowna, Kamloops and Penticton.

“The information we receive from wastewater is valuable in conjunction with other data to help us understand the impact of COVID-19 and how it is spreading in our communities,” Natalie Prystajecky, lead of the wastewater project and head for the Environmental Microbiology program at the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) Public Health Laboratory, said.

People with COVID-19 shed the virus through their feces. The wastewater program involves collecting samples from wastewater treatment facilities and testing them for the virus.

The concentration of the COVID-19 in wastewater over time provides a sense of whether the virus is present and spreading in the community.

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“Expanding wastewater surveillance is very helpful and provides an additional data source for public health to monitor COVID-19 circulation and inform strategies to protect people from severe illness,” Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, stated.

Until recently, wastewater was collected from five Lower Mainland facilities. To expand the program, the BCCDC Public Health Laboratory has been working with regional health authorities and local utilities to bring wastewater testing to additional communities.

Data is now available from Interior and Island health authorities and can now be found on the BCCDC Wastewater dashboard.

Work is ongoing to set up wastewater sampling in Northern Health.