Ethical and legal wastewater surveillance

Abstract

As researchers on molecular methods of wastewater analysis (1, 2), we agree with J. I. Levy et al. (“Wastewater surveillance for public health,” Perspectives, 6 January, p. 26) that community-level monitoring can be an efficient way of detecting new outbreaks of disease and activating or prioritizing local public health actions. This approach to monitoring also serves to assess the effectiveness of mitigation and includes communities with minimal individual testing. However, Levy et al. say little about the ethical or legal considerations that must be considered when expanding wastewater surveillance to new targets or communities. Although wastewater monitoring itself is not new, recent pandemic-stimulated growth in monitoring infrastructure and personnel, technological innovations, and proposals for wider application have made the need for ethical review and oversight urgent. Given that interest in and applications of wastewater surveillance continue to grow, the scientific community and government officials have an obligation to use the technology ethically and legally, ensuring that personal data remains private and vulnerable groups are protected (2, 3).