Wastewater surveillance

COVID-19 wastewater monitoring and statistics

Queensland Health used wastewater surveillance to monitor SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

When there was either no or very low COVID-19 transmission in Queensland, wastewater surveillance was primarily used as a tool to detect the presence of COVID-19 in a geographic area.

Results were useful to guide the public health response. For example, if wastewater samples in a certain geographic area were positive for COVID-19, but there were no known community cases, Queensland Health was able to focus on increasing testing in that area to try to identify, and then contact trace, the positive cases.

When there was widespread COVID-19 transmission in Queensland, wastewater surveillance was used to measure the overall incidence of COVID-19 in a community.

Wastewater surveillance data from these periods can be accessed on the Queensland Open Data portal.

Between January 2023 and December 2025, wastewater surveillance was used to monitor new variants of COVID-19 in Brisbane, Cairns, the Gold Coast, Logan and the Sunshine Coast.

Further wastewater surveillance activities are expected in Queensland, starting in 2026. This will take place as a part of a National Wastewater Surveillance Program. Learn more from the Australian Centre for Disease Control.

National wastewater surveillance activities

The Australian Centre for Disease Control manages Australia’s National Wastewater Surveillance Program. This program commenced in 2026 and monitors wastewater for viruses that have that potential to become a pandemic or epidemic such as SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and B, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and poliovirus. Learn more from the Australian Centre for Disease Control.

Statistics

A weekly update on the number of persons in hospital with COVID-19, Influenza, RSV in Queensland is available from Queensland Health's Acute respiratory infection reporting surveillance.

Queensland coronavirus weekly case totals are available from Queensland Health's Notifiable conditions weekly totals.

Search for COVID-19 in the Open Data Portal for Queensland COVID-19 case line lists and testing data.

National COVID-19 statistics are available from the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care.

COVID-19 deaths registered in Queensland are published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.