Giving Compass' Take:

• Chris Teale reports on the potential economic and health benefits of a recent breakthrough in COVID-19 detection in wastewater.

• How might COVID-19 detection in wastewater provide city officials with much-needed insight on the prevalence of the virus in the community? How can we use this information to devise a recovery effort with an emphasis on equity?

• Find out how you can fund innovative methods for COVID-19 detection around the world.

A pilot project in the City of Ashkelon, Israel, has found that the coronavirus (COVID-19) can be detected in wastewater much quicker than through testing people, while places of infection can be pinpointed to specific neighborhoods or streets.

Led by wastewater management technology company Kando with partners from Israeli academic institutions including Ben Gurion University in Beersheba and the Technion in Haifa, researchers found late last month that there were many more traces of the coronavirus present in wastewater and sewage, even though the city of 150,000 people is generally regarded as having a low number of cases. Kando took samples and used sensors and other technology to measure the concentrations of virus remnants and determine an approximate number of positive cases.

That detection has two benefits, according to Yaniv Shoshan, Kando's vice president of product. It means cities can pinpoint specific areas to lock down based on infection rates rather than shut down entire communities. And it is a much quicker way to detect cases than by testing people, as tests can take too long to return, or people can be asymptomatic and spreading the infection without realizing, Shoshan said.

For cities grappling with the need to either continue citywide lockdowns or do them on a more localized basis, Shoshan said detecting coronavirus in wastewater can enable local officials to make more granular decisions about lockdowns and so have a smaller economic impact.

Read the full article about COVID-19 detection in wastewater by Chris Teale at Smart Cities Dive.