Targeted Amplicon and Metagenomic Sequencing from Ontario Wastewater

Part of the Wastewater Surveillance Initiative supported by the Ontario Ministry of Environment Conservation and Parks. Sequencing of Sars-CoV-2 in Ontario municipal wastewater for analysis to determine VOC/VOI frequencies present in the populations contributing to the wastewater. Results of analysis are reported to public health agencies from which the wastewater samples came. This information is used to inform policy and populate public facing dashboards. The raw sequencing data has also been used to develop and test bioinformatic tools. Some samples are sequenced for other viral targets such as ToBRFV, Influenza, or RSV. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing has been performed on a subset of the samples from this program as well. Funding for the project received by MECP, Health Canada and PHAC.