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10 July 2020 | Story Andre Damons | Photo UFS photo archive
Prof Anthony Turton from the Centre for Environmental Management at the University of the Free State (UFS).
Since a South African team associated with the University of the Free State (UFS) became the first to isolate the SARS-CoV-2 virus from wastewater and developed a viable virus risk forensic service, there has been interest in this technology from a range of role players in North America, Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, to the South African government.

Prof Anthony Turton from the Centre for Environmental Management at the UFS says contact has been made with two separate scientific teams working in South Africa – one in the Western Cape associated with the Department of Health, and one coordinated by the Water Research Commission reporting to the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) – both of which are developing next-generation science. 

Prof Turton says the team has also presented a formal report to the DWS to show that first-generation science is quite capable of generating accurate data that is of great value to planners by feeding into national decision-making bodies.  

A proud achievement 
“As the person who conceptualised this service, I am very proud to be a South African citizen. My background is in national security, so it was that skill set which I applied to the problem when I asked the question – how can we provide the best available information in the shortest possible time, in the face of high risk and growing uncertainty, using the best available technology? This is only possible when one is trained in the intelligence sciences. Intelligence is about converting raw data, often from contested sources, into actionable bits of information with a defined level of certainty.” 
“However, the truly remarkable portion is the team that we rapidly assembled. By hand-picking the right kind of people for the team, we could unlock the power of synergy where 1 + 1 becomes 3. We, as South Africans, have developed a world first, and this is something we can collectively be deeply proud of. This is a proudly South African achievement, not an individual achievement. The benefits belong to society, because even when I was at the CSIR, I championed the notion of ‘science in the service of society’, and here we have another example,” says Prof Turton.

Using available technology
With the 824 wastewater treatment works (WWTW) in the country, the DWS can rapidly deploy this technology to any existing area of concern if they see value in it.  “At present, government is waiting for second-generation science to become available, but that is probably 24 months away at best. In the interim, a crisis is unfolding in the present, and first-generation science is clearly capable of providing sufficiently accurate information to assist in decision-making around the deployment of increasingly scarce resources.”

“DWS used similar technology in the cholera crisis a while back, so they are aware of the benefits. From a society perspective, the question is whether government must wait for the second-generation science to emerge before using the technology, even though first-generation technology can provide an important part of the missing data as explained above. This is what the foreign entities have grasped.”

According to Prof Turton, the interest shown in this technology is from both government and the private sector in North America, Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. A number of key decision-makers see the value of this technology in mitigating both financial and political risk. 

“They recognise that this pandemic is here to stay for a while, so they intend to get ahead of the curve, which is what the forensics service allows. An example is a condominium where a few hundred people live, but who are unable to use the facilities that they pay levies for. This service will enable all residents in a specific condominium to rebuild trust that they live in a ‘safe space’.” 

“For government, they recognise that this technology can feed data into their mapping systems. They refer to a ‘heat map’ that shows areas of viral activity and areas of relative safety. In one case, the focus is on monitoring each building in a city to identify which building is safe and which is a hot spot,” says Prof Turton. 

Next-generation science 
He explains that next-generation science refers to the algorithms used to extrapolate viral-load data to a larger cohort of people. The first-generation science was about the detection of the virus as a binary measurement: “Is the virus present, yes or no?”

“The current science can do this without a problem. Second-generation science is about how much virus is present? Is this more, or less, than we saw last week? If so, how much bigger or smaller is the signal? If so, can we mathematically calculate from a defined quantum of signal an accurate probability of the total viral load in the population being sampled?” 

“From this, can we say that 15% of the population is shedding virus (a number currently only possible from sewage surveillance) but personal testing shows us that only 5% of the population is positive? If so, we can then say that 10% of the population is both positive and asymptomatic. This has major implications for decision-makers, business owners, tourism operators, and governments who are losing revenue because of failing economies.” 
More importantly, says Prof Turton, is that this missing piece of data will become vital in testing for herd immunity, or the efficacy of a vaccine once available. 

The cost of the service 
By presenting a formal report to DWS, the team was able to get an accurate costing of the service. The cost of a single sewage sample, which can accurately monitor a geographically defined cohort (let’s say 100 000 people for the sake of illustration), is equivalent to 15–20 individual samples (nasal swabs, for example). “We can sample 100 000 people at the same cost as 15 can be sampled individually. More importantly, it is highly unlikely that any government in the world will ever reach anything more than 10% sampling at individual level. This tells us that while individual sampling might be very useful, it is logistically complex, and has a political risk when it cannot be rolled out across a large enough portion of society,” says Prof Turton.  

“The virus-risk forensic service that we have been developing can identify specific hot-spot areas, and those can be targeted for higher saturation coverage of individual testing. For example, in the DWS PoC, we identified one specific WWTW that is a definite hot spot, but another that has no viral signal at all. This means that those people living in the area with no viral signal are safe and do not need to be individually tested, but those in the hot spot need to be isolated and targeted for individual testing. More importantly, we can now say that the hot-spot area is likely to result in demand for medical services in a specific area, so planning can be done before the wave hits the hospital,” explains Prof Turton.   
With the submission of the formal report to government, the Business Water Chamber, and the Public Private Growth Initiative (PPGI), we can now announce a team to offer this virus-risk forensic service to any party with a need for this support in both the public and private sectors.

The team is:  
• Prof Anthony Turton – Centre for Environmental Management at the UFS, responsible for the conceptual design of the virus-risk forensic service. 

• Dr Mpafane Deyi – a graduate from the UFS and CEO of Amanzi-4-All, responsible for implementation of the service to both private and public sector partners.

• Dr Leon Geustyn – Director of Amanzi-4-All, responsible for the mathematical and technical aspects of the risk-based diagnostic service. 

• Dr Shaun Groenink – Director of GreenHill Laboratories, responsible for the laboratory support required.
• Dr Cara-Lesley Bartlett – Senior Scientist at GreenHill Laboratories.

• Mr Neil Madgwick – Director of Praecautio, responsible for the coordination of laboratories as the service grows across the African continent.

• Mr Kevin Lindsay – Director of Instru-Serve, responsible for the refinement of bulk sampling techniques and the supply chain from point of collection to the laboratories.
 

News Archive

SRC Inauguration speech: 22 January 2005
2005-01-22

Campus Head (Prof Peter Mbati). Dean of Students (Dr Natie Luyt). Deputy Director: Student Affairs and my boss (Mr. Teboho Manchu), Members of the University executive and Academic staff members, SRC members, Leaders of trade Unions and Student organizations, Distinguished guests, Ladies and gentlemen, most importantly first entering students and Parents receive my heartfelt revolutionary greetings.

Let me extend my word of appreciation to our distinguished guests for adding value and dignity to this event. Your presence here means a lot to us. Program Director what I bring here with me, assisted by facts, and is therefore just the work of my imagination. Like a love letter addressed to a sweetheart miles away, even though you do not know how she feels, what she wants to hear, and do not even know how her face looks like.

To me a speech is just an honest and intimate conversation. That is why I got into the habit of establishing a dialogue, or a debate, with my acquaintances looking at their faces and trying to persuade them of what I am telling them.

Mr. Speaker and Madam Deputy Speaker of the Student Parliament we are gathering at this ceremony, significantly few weeks after the release of grade 12 results, with the exception of those from Mpumalanga because of fraud. The Grade 12 results also show that only 18% of Black learners matriculated with exemptions, as compared to 53, 6% of white learners. This is an indication that our education system needs an overhaul.

We are also gathered here significantly a day after the management retreat held in Bloemfontein, Masselspoort. The retreat discussed, among other things, the transformation agenda, and some possible solutions to challenges we are facing now.

Most regrettably, we are gathered here when the whole world morns the victims of Tsunami tragedy. Let me therefore tore the line and convey our deepest condolences, from the last robot of my heart, to the affected families. Our hearts and thoughts will always be occupied by this horrified tragedy.

Creating a new Institution

I would submit, for purposes of debate and discussions that this Institution should strive to specialize and excel in regional rural development studies. Since our higher education, institutions in South Africa are generally weak in rural development studies. Instead, most of them tend to have an urban orientation to their programmes. Training everybody for the cities, big business and the private sector. This is a big weakness in a country with such large rural areas and population trapped in poverty, disease and ignorance.

Women’s studies

Program Director, it is only a moron who can argue against the fact that for us to reposition the institution around the regional development challenge, we need to start first with women empowerment. It is a fact that in most of our poor communities and families, it is women who withstand the worst of poverty. They are the ones who daily have to wipe tears from children who are hungry. It is women who look after the sick, the elderly, those dying from AIDS and the jobless. They are the one who have to fetch water, make fire and cook. There can therefore be no rural development studies without women studies, in particular on how to empower them and assist in the provision of basic services, so that they are relieved from some of the burdensome task of the society.

Registration Process

Mr. Speaker and Madam Deputy Speaker of the Student Parliament let me indicate that the registration is a process and not an event, so it cannot be concluded overnight. This huge process demands for people to stay calm, as there is no crisis. People should stop being excited. At the same time, no organization should use its cheap popularity and unilaterally disrupt the continuous and smooth running of the registration process at hand.

Let me strongly indicate, madam deputy speaker, that I am on record for stating that I have forgiven all those who have wronged us. I harbour no bitterness towards the protagonists of our painful and unfortunate events of the past week. And we will overcome this process not by our own devices but by the help of Almighty God and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Concerning registration of first years, we have programs, concerning that of senior students, we have programs, regarding graduations we have programs, and concerning HIV\AIDS we have programs. So, there is no need for people to press panicking buttons.

Mr. Speaker and Madam Deputy Speaker of the Student Parliament let me be opportunistic and welcome the entire student body on Campus for the academic year 2005. May our lovely first entering students have a happy and momentous year as part of Qwaqwa Campus of University of the Free State. May your studies be fruitful and enjoyable.

Student years are generally the happiest years of your life, so please make the most of them. While you are doing, all your preparations bear in mind that University is not an opportunity, it is just creating opportunities for a person.

On behalf of SRC members, our people, our students and management members I would like to welcome you all. Even though your parents are far away, here at Uniqwa you have more brothers, more sisters and more parents. Since we will love you with the same love as if we are from one family, and I have no doubts that management members will love and care for you as if you are their own children. Should you encounter any problem while studying at the Qwaqwa Campus of University of the Free State do not hesitate to contact us at the SRC offices because we need to ameliorate any factor influencing you negatively while on campus. I wish you well in the attainment of your academic pursuit.

Senior Students: We are not faced with just a new year but another academic year where we all have to work together to achieve our common goal of building our Institution through the development of human power. I urge you to invest your whole selves in this SRC.

For quite some time now, a debate has been ranging as to, whether has there been any progress in this incorporation process, or we are just moving with no direction. This debate is important, but I hasten to add not essential. The SRC is also involved in this debate, but with definite shift in emphasis. For us it is not important to participate in the debate than it is in finding solutions for the challenges of this new chapter in the history of humankind.

To my colleagues: Comrades, we are leading this Institution with a sense of pride and duty, and I know very well that we lead men and women, students who are determined to ensure that we all reach our destination safely and on time.

I said in one of our meetings that there are more enemies on our way, more than we can imagine. I think you witnessed that during the course of this week. The excitement and unnecessary confusions caused by some confused and loosed charlatans bear testimony to my statements. We should not reveal our game plans unless we are ready to slam.

Let me also borrow from the words of the late Albert Lethuli when he said and I quote: “There remains before us the building of the new land, from the ruins of the old narrow groups, a synthesis of the rich cultural strains which we have inherited. The task is immense”. Lastly, a navy divided within its ranks will be vanquished and destroyed by the enemy, but a navy united in purpose and action, loyalty and commitment will not drawn but sail on to victory.

In conclusion, let me call upon all political structures, church denominations, developmental structures, clubs, societies and forums to put aside all their differences, ideological insinuations and forge unity towards transforming Qwaqwa Campus of University of the Free State into an institution that is seen playing vigilant role in developing students academically, politically, socially, spiritually, religiously, culturally and otherwise.

Program Director, let me end my speech by indicating that every drop of my blood is telling me that Uniqwa is my home. I firstly became a student here, I became an activist here, I became a leader here, I became a president here, I will become a graduant here and hopefully I will become an employee here. So never, doubt my commitment towards the community of this campus.

Please be informed, in a central University of Technology’s way, that if there is no UNIQWA in HEAVEN, then I am not GOING.

Let us broaden the social base.

Tello Titus Wa-Motloung President General

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