This website has been created to help share and diseminate information about passive sampling of wastewaters, with a particular emphasis on using this method for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater. You can simply browse the site for relevant publications and information from those who are using these passive samplers. Use the top navigation bar to make your way to the latest publications on the topic, or if you prefer to read the contributions from our collaborators, please navigate to the "Discussion Topics" page. For those who are actively sampling wastewaters using passive samplers, we need your help! Please contribute by sharing your paper or by contributing to the discussions.
Passive sampling involves the deployment of a device in a waterbody for a known time period, allowing for pollutants in the water to interact with the device. This interaction could include the association of a pollutant with a particular medium or substance or induces a chemical reaction within the device. At the end of the deployment, the passive sampler is analysed through visual inspection or via advanced laboratory analytical methods. A notable advantage of passive sampling in water systems is that the deployment is easy (i.e. no specialised skills required), rapid and usually does not require confined space entry permits. Furthermore, the continuous exposure of the passive sampler to the water column reduces the sampling errors that exist when taking discrete water samples. Consequently, passive sampling has had a significant uptake in freshwater resource settings, especially in the field of water chemistry, where both time- and flow-based passive sampling techniques have been validated.
The application of passive sampling in water and wastewater microbiology has not received much research attention. Some studies have used glass bead passive samplers, one to characterise colonising biofilms in groundwater and the other to monitor for pathogens in wastewater. Some have trialled several passive samplers, including Zetapor membranes, nylon materials, low-density polyethylene and polyvinylidene difluoride for the detection of herpesviruses and noroviruses in seawater. But most studies monitored pathogens in wastewater systems using the Moore’s swab, which is a piece of medical gauze that is placed in the wastewater for 1 to 7 days and is attached to a string for retrieval. Slight modifications to the Moore’s swab have been adopted to monitor for polioviruses in wastewater. Recently, researchers have revived the use of passive samplers for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater. If you are interested in these publications, please navigate to the "publications" page.