This WRC Proof of Concept study evaluated wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) for COVID-19 surveillance in South African communities. Over four weeks, composite samples were collected from 10 wastewater treatment works serving hotspot areas in five provinces.

SARS-CoV-2 RNA was detected in 98% of wastewater samples, confirming that municipal wastewater can serve as an effective early-warning system for community-level infection trends.

The study demonstrated that wastewater surveillance is cost-effective, less invasive, and suitable for ongoing trend monitoring, including defined populations such as prisons and hospitals. Viral load trends corresponded with reported increases in COVID-19 case numbers during peak infection phases.

The findings support scaling to pilot-phase monitoring and integrating wastewater surveillance into broader public health systems, positioning South Africa as a leader in environmental viral monitoring.