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Toilet waste being tested for Indian variant as scientists look for virus spikes by analysing people s poo
Sewage at more than 500 locations is being monitored for coronavirus across the UK
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Thank you for subscribingWe have more newslettersShow meSee ourprivacy notice Sewage-testing is being used to detect coronavirus variants early on and help identify the need for surge testing.
The programme to analyse wastewater is being ramped up across England, where it now covers two-thirds of the English population.
Testing and tracing of sewage ramped up to tackle Covid variants
Areas for surge checks identified as wastewater scheme reaches two-thirds of England s population
Sewage testing is helping to identify Covid variant hotspots
Credit: Reuters
A programme to test sewage to assess the prevalence of different Covid-19 variants in different regions now covers two-thirds of England s population, the Government has said.
The scheme tests samples of wastewater for traces of the virus, and positive samples are genome sequenced to identify whether it is a variant of concern, such as the India strain.
The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the programme had helped identify the need for surge testing in areas such as Bristol and Luton.