Burlington expands wastewater testing to include new COVID variant

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WFFF) — On Friday, Vermont's largest city announced efforts to monitor a new variant of COVID-19 as city officials also turned their attention to the next phase of the vaccine rollout.

Results show the U.K. variant of the virus, discovered early last week in Saratoga Springs, is likely not spreading in the Burlington community at this point.

Mayor Weinberger views the strategy as another innovation that might help city officials get wind of the new strain before it spreads quickly.

"The country's protocols for detecting new variants of the virus are extremely limited," Weinberger said. "We're one of the first cities in the country that are monitoring this way."

The first results, received Friday, were considered a "non-detect."

Burlington's Chief Innovation Officer Brian Lowe explained what that means during Friday's COVID-19 briefing.

"A 'non-detect' doesn't mean that it's not here definitively, but it means if it is here, it's likely at a very, very low level," Lowe said.

It wasn't the same story for the wastewater monitoring of COVID-19 in general. Lowe said some neighborhoods, in particular, are seeing a significant spike.

"The New North End, the Old North End, and Downtown Burlington," Lowe said. "Folks who have been at gatherings outside their homes in recent weeks may really want to consider getting tested."

State and local officials have been going out of their way to emphasize the importance of the coming days as the vaccine rollout enters a new phase and more vulnerable Vermonters get their first shots.

"The stakes remain very high right now," Weinberger said. "If we are able to postpone infections for just a matter of a few more weeks, that may make the difference between life and death for some of our loved ones and neighbors."

With more people getting the green light for vaccination, there's also a new set of challenges emerging.

"Communication, education, and translation services need to be resourced and prioritized," Weinberger said. "We know that about 15% of Burlingtonians do not own cars, and there needs to be a plan either through walkable sites or free transit for residents who don't have cars to access vaccination services right from the start."

Weinberger also said that in the coming weeks, he'll be going over the details of plans for college students to return in early February. He's been in touch with leadership at the University of Vermont and Champlain College, and touted the success of the fall move-in as reason to be optimistic for this upcoming return from winter break.