The detection of SARS-CoV-2 virus in sewage is a clue that helps develop better hypotheses about the whole pandemic, says Phil Hayward. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
Opinion
Sewage is helping solve Covid riddle
The detection of SARS-CoV-2 virus in sewage is a clue that helps develop better hypotheses about the whole pandemic.
Especially, its presence in archived sewerage samples from months before the pandemic even started, in Barcelona, and later in Queensland rural towns with no human Covid
cases ever, shows that something is up in nature, reinforcing why it is impossible to show any uniform effect of the "popular" panicked official policy reactions around the world.
It might be as simple as working out what intermediary virus host between bats and humans is ubiquitous in the worst-hit places. Even having no significant bat populations seems to correlate with low pandemic impact; as does numerous environmental factors. But some people so badly want to make this all about politics.
Only a few weeks ago, the WHO finally admitted that hundreds of "contrarian" experts have been right all along about aerosols as the main means of spread. I recommend a superb piece of informative journalism titled The 60-Year-Old Scientific Screwup That Helped Covid Kill by Megan Molteni.
Phil Hayward, Naenae
Grave concerns
I was astounded by a media report regarding the failure of Hamilton City Council to properly tend the grave sites in our lawn cemeteries, with their stated intent to allow nature to take its course, returning the area to lush meadows. Really?
This contradicts their mission statement of respect, dignity and consideration. Where for gods sake, is there a modicum of truth in each of those words, in staring across a vast green lawn?
Paul Evans-Mcleod, Te Rapa
Not much less?
Heather du Plessis-Allan (HoS, May 23) asks why work a full week when you can not work and end up with not much less in your pocket? The current job seeker benefit is $290 per week compared with a minimum wage of $800 per week. Not many would call 36 per cent of the minimum wage or $7.25 per hour vs the minimum wage of $20 per hour as "not much less".
Kushlan Sugathapala, Epsom
