In view of the massive corona wave in China, the waste water from all flights from China will be examined for new virus variants from next week in Austria. The Ministry of Health announced this on Tuesday. The samples would be taken directly from the aircraft’s waste water tanks, so that new virus variants can be detected with particular precision.
In addition, the Hallstatt wastewater treatment plant will be included in the federal wastewater monitoring system. The sewage treatment plants in Vienna and Salzburg are already part of the federal monitoring program. According to the Ministry of Health, all places regularly visited by tourists from China would be regularly surveyed.
New virus variants could be discovered
This could be used to discover new virus variants, even if visitors from China entered the country by other means. “Unlike China, which has so far been characterized by a zero-Covid strategy, in Austria we register broad immunity against the omicron variant, which also dominates in China,” the health ministry said in a statement.
Compulsory testing in parts of the EU for travelers from China
Mandatory corona tests for travelers from China, as introduced by the EU countries of Italy, France and Spain, are still not planned. To this end, Austria is focusing on a coordinated European approach, it said on Tuesday. A meeting of the IPCR crisis response mechanism will take place in Brussels on Wednesday, where EU countries will once again discuss how to deal with travelers from China.
The Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) is responsible for sequencing the waste water samples from the planes arriving from China.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
