TorjanUV - COVID-19 and Water
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As the world continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, questions about the virus’s potential transmission and/or persistence in drinking water and wastewater are being asked.
Based on interim guidance issued by the World Health Organization on March 19, 2020, there is currently no evidence about the survival of the COVID-19 virus in drinking water or sewage. It goes on to say that the virus has not been detected in drinking water supplies, and based on current evidence, the risk to water supplies is low.
This interim guidance also states that while there is no evidence to date about survival of the COVID-19 virus in water or sewage, the virus is likely to become inactivated significantly faster than non-enveloped human enteric viruses with known waterborne transmission – such as adenoviruses, norovirus, rotavirus and hepatitis A. It also points out that other human coronaviruses have been shown to be sensitive to chlorination and disinfection with ultraviolet (UV) light.