AMELAG
Wastewater Monitoring for Epidemiological Situation Assessment - Monitoring of SARS-CoV-2, Influenza, and Polio Pathogens in Wastewater
Project title Wastewater Monitoring for Epidemiological Situation Assessment – Monitoring of SARS-CoV-2, Influenza, and Polio Pathogens in Wastewater
Acronym AMELAG
Project processing Kira Zachmann, M.Eng.
Carrie Moore, M.Sc.
Dr.-Ing. Shelesh Agrawal
Prof. Dr. Susanne Lackner
Duration 01.11.2022 – 31.12.2024
Grantor Federal Ministry of Health (BMG)
Project Partners
  • Robert Koch Institute (RKI)
  • Federal Environment Agency (UBA)
  • Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV)
  • Wastewater treatment plant operators and state laboratories from the 16 federal states
  • German Armed Forces Medical Service
  • other universities and laboratories
Project content In the BMG and RKI funded project “AMELAG,” wastewater will be systematically monitored for pathogens from May 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024 to draw conclusions about trends in the infection dynamics of the population. The AMELAG project builds on the successes of the previous ESI-CorA project, in which IWAR and FG WUB also conducted genome sequencing. The AMELAG project encompasses several main tasks:
  • Expanding wastewater-based monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 to up to 175 wastewater treatment plants
  • Standardizing workflows, ensuring quality assurance, and normalizing data collection and trend analysis
  • Extending wastewater-based monitoring to other pathogens or disease indicators
The WUB department conducts weekly genome sequencing of wastewater samples from various locations across Germany to track SARS-CoV-2 variants. Additionally, wastewater surveillance using sequencing will be expanded to other pathogens such as influenza. The results are forwarded weekly to the project partners from the health authorities, UBA and RKI and published in a weekly report.
Project homepage