Israeli research may bring about an improved method for identifying coronavirus outbreaks: by analyzing sewer samples for traces of the virus.
The project, by wastewater management tech firm Kando along with researchers from institutions including Ben-Gurion University and the Technion in Haifa, is similar to work being done in other countries, the Reuters news agency reports.
The researchers discovered a previously unknown outbreak in a neighborhood in the coastal city of Ashkelon using that method, the report says.
They initially picked Ashkelon because they believed relatively little remnant of the virus would be found in the wastewater.
The method is seen as a quicker way of discovering COVID-19 outbreaks than individual testing.
Kando says it is in talks with several other municipalities — in Israel and abroad — about setting up its system.
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