NT remains only jurisdiction that still hasn’t done any COVID wastewater testing yet

THE Northern Territory was the only jurisdiction in the country that did not conduct any wastewater testing for traces of COVID-19 in 2020

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THE Northern Territory was the only jurisdiction in the country that did not conduct any wastewater testing for traces of COVID-19 in 2020.

Chief Health Officer Hugh Heggie said heath authorities in the NT hadn’t done any wastewater testing to date because there have been no recorded cases of COVID-19 in the community.

However, Australian Medical Association NT branch president Dr Rob Parker argues that wastewater testing is an “important safeguard” the Territory shouldn’t hold off on implementing.

“Waiting for community transmission before we start wastewater testing seems like a blissfully ignorant approach,” he said.

Dr Warish Ahmed taking sewage samples to test for COVID-19 in Brisbane. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

Dr Heggie said NT Health has a process in place to start testing wastewater, but to date, they haven’t had to use that technology.

“We actually have in place the process of doing it, and we’re partnering with jurisdictions around the country to do this in a way that everybody shares the same information,” he said.

“It is not just a single test, it’s a series of tests, across different areas.”

An NT Health spokeswoman confirmed they were undertaking appropriate investigation into the options available for testing wastewater for COVID-19 across the region.

She the program is expected to be in place early in 2021.

It comes after an Australian-first study by the CSIRO and the University of Queensland recently found that wastewater tests can detect COVID-19 weeks before people show any symptoms.

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CSIRO chief executive Dr Larry Marshall said that as COVID-19 restrictions continue to ease, science has found a way with wastewater to help individual communities avoid a second wave of the pandemic.

“This unique monitoring breakthrough will ensure each suburb gets the medical support it needs so all of us, as a nation, can stay healthier,” Dr Marshall said.

The NT recorded 76 confirmed COVID cases in 2020.

The Territory still had four active overseas acquired cases as of Friday.