Nicole Hancock
Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony ...

Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.

Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony to heal Chedoke Creek

wastewater samples

What else is in a flush? UCalgary researchers are going to find out

What else is in a flush? UCalgary researchers are going to find out

UCalgary researchers behind the hugely successful COVID-19 wastewater monitoring program and online COVID tracker are convinced of the potential of wastewater as a public health tool,­ and they’re not alone. Genome Canada, through regional partner Genome Alberta, has awarded the research group $2M through their Genomic Applications Partnership Program (GAPP) to investigate the potential of wastewater monitoring to detect and track more viruses, in partnership with Alberta Health. An additional combined $4M in funding for the project was awarded by Alberta Health, Genome Quebec, and the Government of Canada.

Vaccine-derived polio virus detected in 2 Canadian wastewater samples

Vaccine-derived polio virus detected in 2 Canadian wastewater samples

After initiating its own wastewater testing for polio last year, Canada has detected two samples of vaccine-derived polio virus type 2 (VDPV2). According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)'s epidemiological update released on Dec. 30, 2022, the virus strain was found in two wastewater samples collected between Aug. 20 and Aug. 30 2022.

Wastewater study shows drop in COVID-19 levels in Saskatoon and North Battleford

Wastewater study shows drop in COVID-19 levels in Saskatoon and North Battleford

COVID-19 levels are down in both Saskatoon and North Battleford, according to the latest data from the University of Saskatchewan's wastewater study. Researchers with the university's Global Water Futures program have been analyzing wastewater samples from Saskatoon, North Battleford and Prince Albert for COVID-19 since summer 2020. The study's results can help predict a rise or fall of COVID-19 diagnoses about a week in advance. In the latest report, which covers the week ending in Nov. 2, Saskatoon saw its biggest weekly drop so far, with SARS-CoV-2 levels down 80 per cent.

COVID-19 levels decline in Saskatoon and Prince Albert wastewater samples

COVID-19 levels decline in Saskatoon and Prince Albert wastewater samples

Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan say levels of COVID-19 were down in Prince Albert and Saskatoon in the latest tests of wastewater samples. Researchers with the university's Global Water Futures program have been analyzing wastewater samples from Saskatoon, North Battleford and Prince Albert for COVID-19 since summer 2020. The study's results can help predict a rise or fall of COVID-19 diagnoses about a week in advance. The latest samples show the week-over-week SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA load in Saskatoon's wastewater decreased by 36.2 per cent.

Evidence of Omicron subvariant BA.2 likely detected in Saskatoon

Evidence of Omicron subvariant BA.2 likely detected in Saskatoon

A toxicology professor at the University of Saskatchewan believes he has found traces of the Omicron BA.2 subvariant, a potentially more-transmissible form of COVID-19, in samples taken in two cities in the province. The Global Institute for Water Security regularly tests wastewater samples in Saskatoon, Prince Albert and North Battleford for evidence of COVID-19 in an attempt to determine whether case numbers are expected to rise or fall. The findings are then handed over to the provincial government and other researchers.

Latest COVID-19 wastewater study shows sharp increases across Sask.

Latest COVID-19 wastewater study shows sharp increases across Sask.

The latest information from researchers at the University of Saskatchewan and University of Regina shows that evidence of COVID-19 continues to increase in wastewater samples. On Monday, researchers at USask's Global Institute for Water Security said samples showed a 810.9 per cent increase in viral RNA load in Prince Albert compared to the previous week.

City of Thunder Bay ramps up wastewater COVID testing as cases rise

City of Thunder Bay ramps up wastewater COVID testing as cases rise

The City of Thunder Bay is increasing its rate of testing wastewater for COVID-19 as cases of the virus in the community climb. Thunder Bay is one of a number of municipalities in the province submitting wastewater samples to labs for analysis. Water samples taken taken at the Thunder Bay's municipal pollution control plant go to the Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research at the University of Windsor.

Wastewater samples can be useful tool as COVID-19 testing declines in Canada

Wastewater samples can be useful tool as COVID-19 testing declines in Canada

With some jurisdictions limiting PCR testing for COVID-19 and others increasingly overwhelmed by diagnostic demands, experts have stressed that daily case counts no longer paint the full picture of viral levels within communities. But what we flush down the toilet may give us a better understanding of COVID-19's prevalence. Researchers across the country have been undertaking wastewater surveillance since early in the pandemic, looking for trace amounts of the virus in sewage to see how it's spreading.

Wastewater samples in Saskatoon show massive increase in the Omicron variant

Wastewater samples in Saskatoon show massive increase in the Omicron variant

Wastewater samples in Saskatoon are seeing a major increase in the Omicron variant since it was detected for the first time in the city last Tuesday. The latest samples tested by the Global Institute for Water Security (GIWS) at the University of Saskatchewan show Omicron constitutes 64.1 per cent the overall COVID-19 viral load in the Saskatoon sample. It is an increase of 808.2 per cent since the variant was first detected in Saskatoon wastewater on Dec. 21. The viral load in Saskatoon's wastewater has increased by 87.7 per cent since then.

COVID-19 levels in wastewater dip in 3 Saskatchewan cities

COVID-19 levels in wastewater dip in 3 Saskatchewan cities

Wastewater samples in Saskatoon have detected the Omicron variant for the first time. The latest samples tested by the Global Institute for Water Security (GIWS) at the University of Saskatchewan show Omicron constitutes 32.8 per cent the overall SARS-CoV-2 viral load in the Saskatoon sample. The GIWS saw 26.2 per cent decrease in evidence of COVID-19 in Saskatoon's wastewater compared to the previous week.

Sask. researchers continue to see downward trends in COVID-19 wastewater testing

Sask. researchers continue to see downward trends in COVID-19 wastewater testing

The most recent COVID-19 wastewater study from the University of Saskatchewan shows a drop in the amount of COVID-19 virus in sewage samples taken from Saskatoon, North Battleford and Prince Albert. The Global Institute for Water Security's report released Monday afternoon showed a decrease of 55.8 per cent in viral RNA (Ribonucleic acid) in Prince Albert's wastewater samples compared to the previous reporting period. The most recent testing period for the city was from Nov. 16 through Nov. 22.

Saskatoon sewer samples show highest ever amount of COVID-19

Saskatoon sewer samples show highest ever amount of COVID-19

Researchers at Saskatoon's Global Institute for Water Security say they've found the highest amount of COVID-19 since the study began. In a report released on Monday, the institute said samples taken on Aug. 15 and 17 showed the highest amount of COVID-19 RNA in its wastewater samples. It showed a 348 per cent increase in viral RNA in samples taken from Aug. 12-17, compared to a week before.

Water detectives: Scientists test wastewater for signs of virus

Water detectives: Scientists test wastewater for signs of virus

For three weeks this summer, scientist Hector Rangel collected samples from wastewater in Caracas, Venezuela. His counterpart in Kampala, Uganda, Brian Lubega, took samples from a stream where open sewers drain into the watershed. These specimens were then processed and sent off to be analyzed at Western University’s Imaging Pathogens for Knowledge Translation (ImPaKT) facility. The goal is to better understand the prevalence of the coronavirus in these areas and get a picture of the variants that are circulating there.

Latest U of S wastewater study shows continued spike in Saskatoon COVID-19 samples

Latest U of S wastewater study shows continued spike in Saskatoon COVID-19 samples

The most recent study from the Global Institute for Water Security at the University of Saskatchewan shows a growing trend of COVID-19 RNA in its wastewater samples. On Monday, the Institute released its weekly report, showing the city's wastewater saw a 118 per cent increase in viral RNA from July 29 to August 4, compared to a week before. Previously, the wastewater studies were able to predict rising numbers of COVID-19 in the city through traces of the virus found in the city's sewage.

Nova Scotia researchers look into wastewater as COVID-19 tracker

Nova Scotia researchers look into wastewater as COVID-19 tracker

Nova Scotia researchers are looking into flushing out new ways to track COVID-19. Studies in countries such as the Netherlands and Switzerland have targeted the genetic remnants of the deadly virus in municipal wastewater systems. They found that tracking the ribonucleic acid (RNA) fingerprint of COVID-19 in specific wastewater locations mirrored the later emergence of cases through clinical testing in the community.

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