https://www.popville.com/2020/12/dc-water-participating-evaluation-sewage-clues-covid-19-infection-hotspots/#more-243971

DC Water will join a handful of wastewater treatment agencies across the country by participating in a broad, national evaluation of sewage to look for clues to COVID-19 infection hotspots.

The authority was recently accepted into the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services phase one program and samples will begin to be taken shortly.

David L. Gadis, DC Water Chief Executive Officer and General Manager, said he expects the study to provide valuable information to the federal and District government, to health professionals and to the broader community.

“COVID-19 is the health issue of our lifetime and I am proud that DC Water can participate in a study as critical as this one to learn more about this virus and find ways to prevent it from taking even more precious lives,” Mr. Gadis said.

In the first phase of the program, officials with HHS are hoping to get samples of wastewater from 100 treatment plants – which serve roughly 10% of the U.S. population. In the next phase, later this year, they will expand the monitoring to 42 states serving 30% of the U.S. population.