Sewage systems will be monitored across the UK to detect new outbreaks of coronavirus

Sewage systems will be monitored across the UK as part of an advance warning system to detect new outbreaks of coronavirus, the Government has said.

The monitoring of sewage systems will begin shortly in a bid to detect coronavirus outbreaks, officials have announced.

The new approach, they said, is based on recent research findings that fragments of genetic material (RNA) from the virus can be detected in waste water.

This could be used to ascertain if there is a presence of the virus in the population, including those who are asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic.

The World Health Organization is clear that there is currently no evidence that coronavirus has been transmitted via sewerage systems.

While still in its infancy, the Government and Devolved Administration partners said they are working closely with academics, UK Research and Innovation and the Natural Environment Research Council and water companies in developing and testing the new approach.

They added that sampling from sewage treatment works around the country is set to begin shortly.

Data gathered will also feed into the Covid-19 Alert System created by the Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC).

It was previously reported that the centre would be in charge of "setting the new Covid-19 Alert level to communicate the current level of risk clearly to the public", according to government documents, from level one — when there is no Covid-19 in the UK — to level five when there is "a material risk of healthcare services being overwhelmed".

The monitoring of sewage is being coordinated by Defra, the Environment Agency and the JBC, working closely with water companies and the Universities of Bangor, Edinburgh, Bath and Newcastle.

In Scotland, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency have begun analysis of the first samples of waste water provided by Scottish Water, coordinating the work with the Scottish Government's Centre of Expertise for Waters, the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute and Health Protection Scotland.

In Wales, a number of options to support specific waste water monitoring projects are being assessed, which would complement the UK programme to aid Covid-19 surveillance.

Further details are expected to be released as the work develops.