Regular testing of sewage in Narrandera

New South Wales Health will begin regular testing for COVID-19 from inflows at the Narrandera Sewage Treatment Plant.

"This service will provide some assurance for Narrandera Shire residents," said Mayor Neville Kschenka. "Testing sewage can help provide early warning of an increase in infections in our area, and potentially identify undetected infections in the community."

"Given our location at the junction of major highways, it's possible a viral fragment will be detected from someone passing through the region, but Council believe the testing will assist with looking out for the well-being of residents and give them some confidence in knowing the threat of COVID-19 is being treated seriously within our Shire."

In the event of a positive test, Council would be immediately advised, and a second test undertaken. Should the results be of concern, NSW Health would look to increase the availability of testing and work to identify cases.

The Sewage Surveillance Program is not designed to identify individuals and does not detect which household the virus fragments are coming from.

NSW Health acknowledge there are several different situations that could be occurring when fragments of the virus are found in the sewage:

"It could mean there has been one or more people who are infectious with COVID-19 in the catchment area, but it could also mean that there has been one or more people in the catchment area who have recently recovered and are no longer infectious.

"People who are recently recovered from COVID-19 can sometimes continue to shed virus fragments into the sewerage system for several weeks even after they are no longer infectious. It could also mean that a person with COVID-19 might have visited the community and has since left the area.

"Typically, sewage moves from houses to the sewage treatment plant in a matter of hours, so cases need to be in the catchment around the time of sampling. It will also depend on other factors such as virus shedding by people (which varies individually and over the course of the infection), dilution of virus within sewage - such as during rain, the time over which the sewage sample is collected, and the presence of chemicals and microorganisms in the sewage that affects how well the testing can detect virus fragments."

Narrandera Shire Council are actively looking for ways to protect the community from infection during the current pandemic.

"Early detection of COVID-19 will assist in managing the spread of the virus. However, the most important practical step is for the community to be vaccinated. We have been in regular contact with the relevant authorities in an endeavour to have more vaccine available for Narrandera Shire residents.," said Mayor Kschenka.

"If you are eligible for vaccination, then I encourage you to book an appointment."