The COVID-19 testing system has been overwhelmed by the Omicron variant, making it impossible to know how many people are infected.
Monitoring for the novel coronavirus in wastewater could help fill the gap, says Rob Delatolla, a professor of civil engineering at the University of Ottawa and one of dozens of researchers across Canada that have been developing and using the technique.
“I think it just became that much more valuable,” he said.
But how does it work? What can and can’t it do? And how much can it really help inform public health policy?
Why is wastewater used to test for COVID-19?
