The French Research Institute for the Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer) recently sought to verify the absence of SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19 ) in the marine environment. According to the results, the coronavirus is not present in any way, neither in seawater nor in shellfish. In addition, another study looked at other bathing waters, namely that of rivers, lakes and other swimming pools.
As France deconfines, research on Covid-19 continues. In a press release published on May 18, 2020, Ifremer delivered the results of its first seawater and shellfish samples. The goal? Spot a possible presence of Covid-19 in the sea . You should know that this question is legitimate given that traces of the coronavirus have recently been detected in wastewater.
According to the results, Covid-19 is absent 21 samples of oysters and mussels and 3 samples of seawater. These samples come from the different facades of the French coast, at places where there would be potential human waste. It therefore seems that the salinity of seawater strongly reduces the virality of Covid-19.
For researchers, the results are good news . However, they point out that it is currently impossible to be completely certain an absence of Covid-19 in all French coastal waters (in mainland France) and shellfish. In any case, Ifremer has indicated that it wants to continue sampling every two weeks, for several months.
If the news seems positive about salt water, what about fresh water from lakes and other rivers? Another study published on May 5, 2020 and conducted by the Spanish Superior Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) provides an answer. The study focused on seawater, lake and river water as well as swimming pool water.
According to the results, swimming pool water is able to reduce the virality of Covid-19 due to the presence of chlorine. The observation is the same for jacuzzis in which a rather high temperature prevails. However, the water in rivers and lakes logically presents a greater risk . In addition to the absence of chlorine and high temperature, it is possible that wastewater carrying the virus could contaminate these fresh waters. The researchers therefore advise against bathing in the water of rivers and lakes.
