Coronavirus In Boston Sewage Down To Pre-Omicron Peak
BOSTON — Coronavirus in the Boston-area wastewater is at its lowest level since the omicron variant reached Massachusetts, according to the latest data published Wednesday by Cambridge-based epidemiology firm Biobot Analytics.
The amount of viral RNA in Deer Island Treatment Plant is at its lowest point since early to mid-December, depending on the region of the system samples were taken from.
The plant serves 43 communities in greater Boston, split between the authority's "North System" and "South System." A map of the North and South systems is available here.
Coronavirus in South System sewage has fallen below the pre-omicron peak, which was in early December. North System coronavirus levels over the last week were the lowest since December 15, when the variant made up just a quarter of the viral RNA in sampled sewage.
Coronavirus peaked in sewage from Jan. 2-5 and began to fall as quickly as it rose, according to Biobot data. The decline appears to have slowed somewhat over the last week.
The most recent samples were taken Tuesday. Samples of wastewater are taken three to seven times a week, according to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the wastewater metric "can provide information on changes in total SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) infection in the community contributing to that wastewater treatment plant." In other words, an increased presence of COVID-19 in wastewater from showers, sinks and toilets can indicate an increased infection rate in the communities where the wastewater comes from.
"Every time an infected person uses the toilet, they're flushing this information down the toilet, where it's collecting and aggregating and mixing with poop from thousands of other people," Newsha Ghaeli, a co-founder and president of Biobot Analytics, told NBC News.
The wastewater data has predicted trends in other coronavirus metrics in recent weeks, with the positive rate, case counts and even hospitalizations now also showing the state is over the worst of the omicron surge.
This article originally appeared on the Boston Patch
