Yarmouth Covid Wastewater Testing Results - Mar 9, 2023
Mar 9, 2023
Summary
In the seven weeks since our last Yarmouth, Maine, COVID report on January 18, 2023, wastewater levels of SARS- CoV-2 rose during the first three weeks of February and then declined to the lowest levels seen since June 2022.
Reported COVID-19 cases declined during the first five weeks of this reporting period from 10 to 2, and have remained low for the past three weeks at 2–3 cases per week.
In light of the levels of SARS-CoV-2 in Yarmouth's wastewater during the past three weeks, we are lowering the COVID-O-Meter to the Low level.
Yarmouth SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Wastewater Testing Results — Mar 9, 2023
Since May 2022 Yarmouth wastewater samples have been collected twice weekly and are tested by Biobot Analytics in Massachusetts.
The adjusted virus levels were 1,026 and 498 copies/mL in the two most recent wastewater samples (March 6–7 and March 8–9, respectively).
Viral levels for January 19 through March 9 fluctuated between 377 and 2,394 copies/mL. The overall trend during this period was upward to a peak in mid-February and then downward (Figure 1, Table 1).
February’s viral levels averaged 1,255 copies/mL, as compared to monthly averages of 777 during November, 1,086 during December, and 1,187 during January. So far, March’s viral levels have averaged 659 copies/mL.
Yarmouth’s February viral levels were similar to those measured in Portland’s and Brunswick’s February wastewater samples. The trends during February for Portland’s East End and Westbrook-Gorham Regional facilities showed a slight peak in mid-February followed by a decline; Brunswick’s levels increased during February.
In early March 2023, the highest US state wastewater SARS-CoV-2 virus levels were in Idaho, Missouri, and Vermont, followed by Alaska and Maine.
COVID-19 Case Reports
Weekly cases of COVID-19 for Yarmouth—as reported by Maine CDC—ranged from 2 to 10 for January 22, 2023, through March 5, 2023, with 2 cases reported for February 20–26, and 3 cases for February 27–March 5 (Figure 2).
The two most recent case reports reflect the lowest weekly numbers of reported cases since late November 2022 (Figure 2).
Reported case counts are likely to be much lower than the actual number of cases due to reduced testing and increased self-testing (home testing), which is not reported to Maine CDC. Anecdotally, we hear from many in the community using home testing and management.
We recommend that the Yarmouth Community continue to exercise caution:
Get vaccinated and boosted. Bivalent boosters with the original vaccine component and a new component based on the common variants currently circulating (i.e., BA.4 and BA.5) are available from Moderna and Pfizer.
Consider wearing a mask in indoor public places particularly if you are unvaccinated, 60 years of age or older, or immune compromised.
Avoid crowded indoor spaces.
When indoors, good ventilation (air exchange) is important.
Test with a rapid antigen test when gathering with friends and family who have been out and about, or if you will be spending time with people at higher risk.
If you test positive for COVID or believe you have a COVID infection, discuss the value of therapeutics with your doctor. These medications shorten the course and severity of the illness and likely reduce transmission to others.
If you have COVID, leave isolation only after you have a negative rapid antigen test.
Persons who are immune compromised due to medical conditions or medical treatments should take particular care, as should those around them.
The Yarmouth Community Coronavirus Task Force and the Wastewater Testing Team will continue to evaluate the testing results from the twice weekly samples. If there are significant changes, we will notify community members via the Town website, the YCCTF website (Be Well Yarmouth), and the YCCTF and Yarmouth Community Network Facebook sites.
Learn more about why we do wastewater testing and how it has recently changed at our Wastewater Testing page.
Yarmouth's wastewater testing program for SARS-CoV-2 is currently collecting and testing two 24 hour wastewater samples each week: the first is collected from 7 am Monday to 7 am Tuesday, and the second from 7am Wednesday to 7 am Thursday. Samples are sent to Biobot Analytics in Cambridge, Massachusetts for testing. The program is currently funded by the U.S. CDC.
The results of wastewater testing for Yarmouth and other locations in Maine are posted on the Maine CDC website.
An overview of COVID-19 wastewater monitoring in the United States with graphs of testing data for the U.S. and selected U.S. counties, including 14 counties in Maine, is available from Biobot.
We would like to thank Chris Cline and Yarmouth Wastewater Treatment Facility staff for collecting and submitting the wastewater samples twice a week and Steve Johnson, Yarmouth's Town Engineer, for overseeing the wastewater testing program.