wastewater

As COVID-19 cases continue to spike in Massachusetts, there’s another troubling sign that the virus is returning to the dangerously high levels of last spring’s outbreak. Traces of COVID-19 at the sewage plant that treats wastewater for Boston and many of its suburbs are as high as they were in mid-April, according to public data shared by the Massachusetts...

With the Boston-area bracing for an influx of more coronavirus cases, what travels below the cities’ streets could give us the clearest picture of an uptick in cases. “Everybody has a voice in the sewer,” said Mariana Matus, cofounder of Cambridge-based Biobot. Biobot is testing the wastewater at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority’s Deer Island wastewater treatment plant. The...

Health officials who are monitoring COVID-19 are keeping a close eye on wastewater, which shows a rise of coronavirus contaminants. A scientist who tracks the data says she’s concerned.

The rising daily coronavirus case count in Massachusetts isn’t the only warning sign of a new spike in cases for the Boston area. Traces of COVID-19 are appearing more frequently at the sewage plant that treats wastewater for Boston and many of its suburbs, according to public data shared by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority. Sewage from the southern...