Wastewater

2019-20 coronavirus outbreak

Engineering

Ecology

Biology

Developing country

Betacoronavirus

Virology

Economics

Sewerage

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)

Outbreak

Environmental health

Business

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Paleontology

Environmental engineering

Sewage

Open defecation

Infectious disease (medical specialty)

Environmental science

Feces

Coronavirus Infections

Sanitation

Medicine

Transmission (telecommunications)

Economic growth

Pandemic

Disease

Electrical engineering

Pathology

International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health

The COVID-19 pandemic that has engulfed the world, has affected the human lives in several aspects. The detection of SARS-CoV-2 in faeces and urine of the infected person, even after viral clearance in the respiratory tract, and its presence in untreated wastewater raises the possibility of fecal-oral transmission in future. The situation is likely to be more aggravated in developing and least developed countries struggling with the problem of ineffective waste disposal system, open defecation, poor sanitation, and limited access to clean drinking water. In this review, the available data on wastewater treatment, sanitation status and healthcare infrastructure from middle- and low-income countries is collected and correlated with the risk associated with the fecal-oral transmission of SARS-CoV-2. The review also highlights the limitation of COVID-19 surveillance through sewage monitoring in these countries owing to the absence of proper sewerage system. An inclusive approach of awareness, prevention, and mitigation from global to the local levels is required to overcome this challenging situation in developing countries.

SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater: Challenges for developing countries