Novel COVID-19 Testing Discovered

Anytime I hear water mentioned during a news story it piques my interest. The interview I heard yesterday on NBC News was so incredible that I wanted to share it, mainly because I think we are all growing weary with the constant coverage while seemingly no real progress is being made.

An official from the University of Arizona was being interviewed about a discovery he and his team made by testing the wastewater of the dorms. They were able to identify the presence of the COVID-19 virus in the wastewater from one of the campus dorms. They then proceeded to test each of the students residing there, found two who tested positive—even though they were asymptomatic—isolated them, and very possibly prevented the spread of the coronavirus campus-wide. When the wastewater was tested the next day after the two students were removed, there was no evidence of the virus present.

As quoted in the publication “The Hill”, A team led by Ian Pepper, director of the university’s Water and Energy Sustainable Technology Center, tested the samples five additional times to confirm the presence of COVID-19. What we really need to find out are who are the people who are asymptomatic that are positive, so this random testing, this use of wastewater-based epidemiology is going to be really important.

The worldwide pandemic has forever changed life as we knew it, especially with regard to the education of our children. There are researchers, doctors, scientists, and academic scholars all working feverishly to find solutions: over 170 vaccines under development; various testing metrics; therapeutic drugs for treatment; contact tracing after exposure; and on and on. This discovery can be transformational in life returning to normal for college campuses. Kudos to Dr. Ian L. Pepper and his team.

Links to sources: https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/514125-university-of-arizona-says-dorm-wastewater-testing-possibly?ocid=uxbndlbing; https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2020/08/27/university-arizona-covid-19-outbreak-prevented-dorm-wastewater-testing/5649579002/?ocid=uxbndlbing

Stop the Spread...Wash Your Hands!

In the midst of the worldwide pandemic happening all around us, one of the constant commands we hear numerous times a day besides “wear a mask” and “avoid crowds” is to “wash your hands”. Easy enough you’d think—unless you are one of the 2.2 million Americans lacking access to clean running water.

I was shocked to learn this appalling statistic recently on CBS Sunday Morning (July 26, 2020). Here we are the richest country in the world and yet we have citizens among us unable to wash their hands because they do not have water. Access to clean running water is essential for living—it should be a right to all American citizens—yet it is not. How can this happen? How can we fix this?

Thankfully there are people who think as I do, that this situation is unconscionable especially in light of the health scare we are all experiencing right now. The digdeep.org is just such a group—they are a human rights non-profit organization that is on a mission to right this wrong.

According to their research 2.2 million Americans do not have running water or basic plumbing like a flush toilet. Another 44 million more don’t have clean water that’s safe to drink. That’s hard to believe for those of us who take such basic necessities for granted.

I was moved to reach out and get more information on what this organization was all about and how I could help. The first thing I did was ask to join their Water Council and get their permission to spread the word about their mission by bringing awareness to the plight shared by too many Americans—no water.

We are not a huge, wealthy corporation, but for over a quarter of a century we’ve advocated for sustainable water conservation and an end to the pollution created by toxic water treatment chemicals around the globe that continue to contribute to the climate crisis. But this is a human crisis that requires action now, not later. That’s why I have pledged to contribute a percentage of sales to this worthwhile cause and become part of the solution. Our company founder believed that we should all endeavor to leave the world a better place than we found it and I intend to do just that.

Visit Dig Deep

The Dichotomy of Our Weather

As I watch the news updates about the hurricane in Texas, I'm amazed about the contradictions in our increasingly unstable weather patterns. While the people in Texas are getting apocalyptic amounts of rainfall, the Plains states are experiencing one of the worst droughts in decades.  The drought conditions are affecting food and hay crops and searing pastures that feed the cattle, causing many ranchers to sell off their cattle. This drought situation will adversely affect the dry bean crop, wheat and barley production, corn and soybeans, and will eventually be felt in the wallets of consumers.  According to the National Weather Service the drought conditions continue across western South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming.

Meanwhile, hurricane Harvey is expected to linger for 5 days dumping up to 36 inches of rain in some parts of Texas. There will be major flooding to be sure and yet people will have to drink bottled water, because there will be no clean water available. This disaster too will affect many, far beyond the path of this storm...like the availability of and an increase in the price of gasoline for starters. Talk about opposite ends of the spectrum! It's scary to be sure, but that's just what's happening in the U.S.  

Natural disasters and extreme weather is going on all around the globe.  The tsunami in Japan; landslides in Switzerland; typhoons in Asia; flooding north of Ireland, in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh; earthquake in Italy -- and all these disasters occurred just this past week. It makes doing all we can to lessen our impact to the environment even more urgent.  Prayers for all in harm's way.