People infected with COVID-19 can shed the virus through their stool, even if they don't have any symptoms. Testing a community's sewage (wastewater) can tell us if COVID-19 is increasing or decreasing in that community.
Our scientists have developed a pan-Canadian wastewater network to monitor the spread of COVID-19 in Canada. This is in collaboration with provincial, territorial and municipal governments and academia across Canada.
Some communities and local health authorities are collecting wastewater samples for analysis by Canada's National Microbiology Laboratory. Analysis helps detect the virus that causes COVID-19 and variants.