I'm crushed that #Biobot stopped posting real-time county-level #wastewater data. They were the most consistent, transparent, reliable source to show that #CovidIsNotOver.
My local #Massachusetts Water Resource Authority #MWRA uses Biobot, will this affect their data too?! Their graphs don't map to my county exactly, but they're close.
https://www.mwra.com/biobot/biobotdata.htm
Are there any other sources? I'm looking into #WastewaterSCAN, though they also do not have my county.
You can ask them(email): ask.mwra@mwra.com
They have a public relations dept. Think they have public meetings regularly as well.
@joex Thank you for this info! I just sent them an email. 🤞
Please tell me what they say. I mentioned this in another thread, but, a lot of state and local utilities have their own dashboard, but collect and send samples to Biobot. My understanding is that they've essentially just been put on a subscription plan by Biobot and as long as they pay they will continue without any differences, but I haven't seen that officially anywhere as of yet.
@sleepfreeparent @BE @ikuo1000
I like the BioBot data a lot, and it seems like a no brainer from a public health perspective. But I really can't blame BioBot. PCR ain't cheap. Be nice if the feds would pay for it.
@joex @sleepfreeparent @ikuo1000
Definitely don't disagree overall. I've heard some things through the grapevine, a while back, about what their financials supposedly look like versus what their VC overlords(Thursday Ventures) want. They have 4 patents on their technology, and I don't *think* they're planning on licensing anyone else to do testing.
I have no interest in being sued, though, and given that it's just rumors I'll just leave it as is and see what comes next in wastewater testing, if anything.
@BE @joex Good news!! I just received a friendly response to my email inquiry:
"Thanks for reaching out, and I’m glad you find our wastewater tracking data helpful.
Our Director of Laboratory Services has confirmed that MWRA will still be receiving data from our samples, and we will continue sharing the data.
I hope that this is helpful."
👏 🎉
@BE @ikuo1000 @joex even the wastewater monitoring is getting enshittified?