Coronavirus levels in wastewater rise ‘significantly’ in Ottawa – CBC
Current average is more than 4x higher than before Omicron surge in December 2021
Mar 23, 2022
Recent wastewater data in Ottawa confirms what many suspected — the city is swimming in yet another wave of COVID-19 — but modelling suggests it won’t be as bad as the last one, experts say.
The average level of coronavirus in the city’s wastewater has risen “significantly” over the past 10 days of available data, according to a local researcher who said similar trends are seen across Ontario.
“How big that wave will be, we don’t know yet … we’re more concerned right now with that increase in signal,” said Tyson Graber, co-lead investigator of the COVID-19 wastewater project in Ottawa.
While the nation’s capital is nowhere near the peak of the first Omicron-driven wave in early 2022, Graber said people should take precautions to protect themselves and the community.
“Nothing has changed just because the government has decreed that masks are no longer required,” he said.
“Using this data, you as an individual has to make that decision of whether or not you would like to be masking in certain areas, or whether you should go to that party on Friday night.”
Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/coronavirus-rises-wastewater-ottawa-1.6393622
