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Testing for Covid-19 at the Army Bay wastewater treatment plant has stepped up following the first positive sample this month.
The Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR) has been taking wastewater samples at Army Bay weekly since September 18 but all were negative until the week ending October 9.
The most recent samples, taken on October 12 and 14, were also both positive.
The Army Bay wastewater catchment encompasses a wide area including Whangaparāoa, Hatfields Beach, Ōrewa, Silverdale and Millwater.
The sampling is very accurate and indicates that at least one person has been shedding the virus in the 24 hours before the sample was collected. It does not necessarily mean active infections are in the community – it could be non-infectious, recently recovered cases.
Senior ESR scientist, Brent Gilpin, says repeated detection of the virus in wastewater strongly indicates that someone in the catchment area is shedding the virus.
“If they haven’t yet been picked up in clinical testing, we would encourage anyone with symptoms or who has had contact with those outside the area to follow the health advice and get tested,” he says. “In the meantime, to provide the best chance of limiting the spread, it’s best if everyone in the area treats everyone else as potentially infected and takes the appropriate precautions like wearing masks and keeping their distance.”
A Ministry of Health spokesperson says positive detections in wastewater samples are expected as the outbreak is now more dispersed, with positive cases in 124 (out of 300) Auckland suburbs.
The cases are being managed appropriately and isolated, the spokesperson says.
Anyone who has symptoms of Covid-19 is asked to get tested and self-isolate until they receive a negative test result.
Meanwhile, the pop up community testing drive-through in Victor Eaves Reserve, Ōrewa, closed last week. It was set up after Red Beach became a suburb of interest on October 5. A Northern Region Health Coordination Centre (NRHCC) spokesperson says it was closed after testing numbers returned to a level that can be managed by local health providers.
As the virus is now widespread, the focus for testing has shifted from suburbs of interest to areas with higher positivity rates where the risk of unidentified cases is higher. These areas are named in the Ministry’s daily briefing. Any locations of interest are also listed on the Ministry’s website.
