SARS-CoV-2 and other pathogens could be determined in liquid samples from soils.

In the current COVID-19 pandemic, SARS-CoV-2 has been quantified in wastewater in various countries, and wastewater based epidemiology has been proposed as a potential early warning tool for new outbreaks. However, even taking into account that poorly treated wastewater and sewage sludge may be spread on soils, there is no published paper dealing with the quantification of the virus in soil-related liquid samples, as could be runoff, leachates, or soil solution. To fill this gap, the authors of this piece propose reflections on the development of a methodological approach for the quantification of SARS-CoV-2 (and eventually other pathogens) in soil-related liquid samples.