Water Sector News
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Central San teams up with UC Berkeley for COVID-19 wastewater research project
Local sewer service provider Central Contra Costa Sanitary District (Central San) is utilizing its facilities to help in the fight against the rampant coronavirus by participating in a regional wastewater monitoring project that tracks SARS-CoV-2 -- the virus that causes COVID-19.
The Central Contra Costa Sanitary District has partnered with U.C. Berkeley to help track coronavirus materials found in the county's wastewater facilities. (Photo courtesy Central Contra Costa Sanitary District)
Officially launching in November, Central San has been collecting wastewater samples three times per week at its treatment plant, checking for trends and warning signs of rising coronavirus rates. Staff said the information will help enable county and state health officials to track overall infections rates throughout the region.
"Wastewater is a rich source of information about the health of the population it comes from. As the pandemic continues to surge across the country, scientists and public health officials are increasingly turning to wastewater-based epidemiology to help spot early warning signs of rising infection rates, track trends, and monitor hot spots," Central San staff said.