The announcement of the presence of “minimal traces” of the virus in the non-drinking water network of Paris can cause many concerns. However, it must be kept in mind that the chances of SARS-CoV-2 multiplying in the environment are non-existent.
- Traces of the virus responsible for the Covid-19 epidemic have been found in undrinkable water in Paris
- Until this water is drunk, there would be no danger
- It is the faeces evacuated in the waste water of Paris which explains these traces of the coronavirus in the undrinkable water
As the mayor of Paris announced on April 19, “minimal traces” of SARS-CoV-2 were found in the capital’s non-drinking water network. A piece of news that raised several questions: has the drinking water network been contaminated? Are people who have been in contact with streets cleaned with infected water at risk of contracting the virus?
Because, although it is not intended for consumption, non-potable water is used to clean the streets, but also to water certain parks and gardens, as well as to supply their fountains, lakes, or waterfalls. Nevertheless, the City wanted to be reassuring: there is “no risk for drinking water”which depends on a network “totally independent” and “shows no trace of the virus”. By “precautionary principle”the use of the non-potable water network was immediately suspended.
The virus “has no chance of multiplying” in the environment
“There is no specific reason why you get sick just from touching water. It is necessary, for one to be sick, that the virus is in contact with the mucous membranes. As long as you don’t drink the water or breathe it, there is no problem”assures Laurent Moulin, microbiologist at the Eau de Paris research and development laboratory, contacted by RFI.
The specialist is categorical: the virus “has no chance of multiplying” in the environment, contrary to popular belief. “In sewage, it lives a few days maximum, not longer than that. In surface waters, it is the same. The lifespan is quite limited.he explains to our colleagues.
“There is no evidence that the virus is transmitted via contaminated drinking water”
Even if the virus is present in drinking water, we should not worry. “Although maintenance of the virus in drinking water is possible, there is no evidence that the coronaviruses carried by humans are present at the surface or in underground sources, or that they are transmitted via contaminated drinking water”estimated the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 19 in a communicated.
Moreover, it is not surprising that microparticles are identified in four of the twenty-seven sampling points usually tested in Paris. Indeed, they come from the faeces of contaminated people. This is the case with every epidemic, whether it is the flu, gastroenteritis, or, in this case, Covid-19.
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