Boston launches COVID wastewater surveillance program, taking samples from 11 manholes

The city is launching its COVID wastewater surveillance program, as health officials use samples from 11 manholes to get a more detailed local view of circulating virus and its variants across different neighborhoods.

The 11 testing sites are in Brighton, Back Bay, Charlestown, Dorchester, East Boston, Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, Mattapan, Roslindale, Roxbury, and South Boston.

COVID wastewater data has helped predict virus surges over the last couple of years.

This data from different neighborhoods will help the Boston Public Health Commission respond to the pandemic with “more precise interventions for communities with high or rising levels of virus,” BPHC said in a statement.

Prior to this program, BPHC has relied solely on wastewater data generated by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and Biobot Analytics — which measured the concentration of COVID virus particles for the Greater Boston area.

“This exciting new wastewater surveillance program will enhance our ability to respond to the many ongoing challenges presented by COVID-19,” said Bisola Ojikutu, commissioner of Public Health and executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission.

“We recognize that COVID-19 continues to have a disproportionate impact within communities throughout Boston,” Ojikutu added. “Our goal is to use these data to inform our strategies and ensure equity in our responses.”

The new testing program is a partnership between BPHC, the Boston Water and Sewer Commission, and Cambridge-based Biobot Analytics, a world leader in wastewater epidemiological services.

This partnership began in October, with the three organizations working closely to identify the most optimal test sites and pilot the data collection and analysis methods.

“We are thrilled to partner with the Boston Public Health Commission on its COVID-19 wastewater surveillance program,” said Mariana Matus, CEO and co-founder of Biobot Analytics. “Boston is a true trailblazer for investing today into the public health infrastructure of tomorrow.

“The launch of these new wastewater testing sites will create granular data that is more actionable for local officials and will help with the planning of resource allocation and interventions and increase public awareness,” Matus added.

Wastewater sample gathering will take place twice a week, and the publicly available online data will be updated accordingly to help keep the public informed about the COVID risk levels in their communities.

These data can be accessed by visiting boston.gov/government/cabinets/boston-public-health-commission/covid-19-boston#wastewater-reports.

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