Samples have been taken weekly from the inflow point at the Shepparton Wastewater Management Facility on Daldy Rd since late April.
These samples have then been transported to the ALS laboratory in Melbourne and analysed alongside samples from across the state.
It is all part of a national project monitoring coronavirus in wastewater, as part of wider research to understand how the virus spreads.
On Tuesday, September 29, it was confirmed viral fragments of COVID-19 had been detected in wastewater taken from the sewerage network at Anglesea, despite no known coronavirus cases in the area in recent weeks.
The Department of Health and Human Services said the positive trace may be the result of someone with coronavirus infection who had not been detected through testing.
It could also be because someone who has previously been infected is continuing to “shed” the virus.
This shedding can take several weeks; however, the fragments themselves are not infectious.
Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said until the state had a "highly effective and available vaccine" for COVID-19, early detection and prevention was crucial.
“Wastewater testing provides an additional and complementary tool to the existing public health response and can provide early warning that COVID-19 is in a community before traditional testing methods,” he said.
“Finding cases early can help our disease detectives track the spread of the virus and implement strategies to minimise transmission, preventing hotspots or clusters before they have time to develop.”
DHHS said the testing of wastewater treatment plants would have no impact on the local water supply, which was safe to drink.
There is also no evidence that coronavirus can be spread via recycled water or treated wastewater released to waterways.
Sampling sites have been established across Victoria’s metropolitan and regional sewerage network as part of the Collaboration on Sewage Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 Project.
Co-ordinated by Water Research Australia, the project brings together health departments, water utilities, laboratories and researchers to share advances in this rapidly evolving field.
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