Evaluating the persistence of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) in the urban water cycle

新型冠状病毒病2019 （COVID-19）是一种急性呼吸道疾病，于2020年初首次引起世界卫生组织的关注。导致COVID-19的病原体是SARS-CoV-2，它是冠状病毒家族的一员。最近来自三大洲的研究表明，污水处理厂（WWTPs）的污水中存在SARS-CoV-2，这与该病毒通过粪便排出的情况一致。基于这一证据，我们假设SARS-CoV-2将在加拿大市政污水处理厂的污水中被检测到。虽然通常认为常规废水处理能有效降低病毒载量，但处理对去除SARS-CoV-2的功效尚不清楚。即使废水处理成功，许多城市也会经历工厂旁路事件，即未经处理或部分处理的污水直接排放到接收水域。在这些情况下，尚不清楚如果从污水处理厂流出物中释放出SARS-CoV-2将在环境中持续多长时间。我们将与安省湖滨镇和安省阿默斯特堡镇的合作伙伴合作，解决两个研究目标：

Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an acute respiratory disease which first came to the attention of the World Health Organization in early 2020. The pathogen responsible for COVID-19 is SARS-CoV-2, a member of the coronavirus family. Recent research from three continents has demonstrated the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) consistent with the virus being shed in feces. Based on this evidence, we hypothesize that SARS-CoV-2 will be detected in the influent of municipal WWTPs in Canada. While it is generally assumed that conventional wastewater treatment effectively reduces viral load, the efficacy of treatment in removing SARS-CoV-2 is not known. Even if wastewater treatment is successful, many municipalities experience plant bypass events whereby untreated or partially treated sewage is discharged directly into receiving waters. In these cases, it is not known how long SARS-CoV-2 will persist in the environment if released from WWTP effluent. Working with our partners at the Town of Lakeshore, ON and the Town of Amherstburg, ON, we will address two research objectives: 1) to assess trends/changes in occurrence of community infection from sewage surveillance 2) to evaluate persistence of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater effluent: a. using surrogate phage b. during a bypass event Information gained from this study will inform municipalities on best practices in wastewater treatment to address the safety of our water supply and build capability to address future pandemics. Data on viral load in influent will provide a proxy to assess trends in community infections in lieu of widescale testing of individuals and will provide early warning to a possible 'second wave' of infection. The partnership also offers opportunities to test hypotheses related to persistence of SARS-CoV-2 on occasions when it is discharged to the environment, in this case Lake St. Clair and the binational Detroit River Great Lakes Area of Concern.