Despite a surge in Europe and the rise of the subvariant BA.2 across the United States, coronavirus levels in northern Palm Beach County have declined from two weeks ago and remain near pre-omicron lows, recent sewage tests show.
Viral concentrations detected Monday in wastewater from the Loxahatchee River District is 96% lower than Jan. 3, but still higher than test results from Dec. 6, before the pathogen's omicron mutation engulfed Florida.
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Laboratory tests conducted by Boston-based Biobot Analytics found 196 copies of the coronavirus' genetic material for every milliliter of sewage in a jar of wastewater. The district reported the results Wednesday.
That's down from the previous reading of 238 pieces of RNA per milliliter March 7.
Biobot discovered 59 pieces per milliliter on Dec. 6 and 5,306 fragments per milliliter Jan. 3.
The Loxahatchee River District services ZIP codes 33458, 33477 and 33469, covering parts of Jupiter, Tequesta and Jupiter Inlet Colony. It sends samples to Biobot every other week.
Wastewater can uncover COVID-19 trends faster than official caseload statistics. It takes a few days to mail a jar of sewage, have it tested and report the results. It can take up to a week for state health officials to collect, process and report polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results. And official test statistics don't capture results from at-home kits.
And unlike PCR tests, sewage data comes from all households a wastewater treatment plant processes.
While local wastewater shows virus levels remaining low, other sewage treatment plants across Florida show conflicting trends.
Biobot readings of Miami-Dade County samples show viral concentrations growing to 113 parts per milliliter on March 16, up from 80 two weeks prior.
The lab also detected an uptick in Seminole County: 150 parts per milliliter on March 16, up from 111 the week before.
Viral concentrations remain remain low in March 16 readings from Hillsborough County and Orange County.
But one of three Orange County wastewater samples collected by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed an increase in viral concentration from March 2 to 19. So did one of two samples from Pinellas County.
Results from Brevard County (home to Cape Canaveral) and Escambia County (Pensacola) showed declines from March 2 to 19.
Florida logged 8,757 new infections in the week ended Thursday, around the same weekly sum recorded during late November.
Chris Persaud is The Palm Beach Post's data reporter. Email him at cpersaud@pbpost.com.