Sewage could help researchers studying spread of coronavirus

By The Associated Press
May 20, 2020 | 9:43 AM

STAFFORD, Va. — Researchers hope that data collected from wastewater treatment plants will help identify and predict future spreads of the coronavirus.

The Free Lance-Star reported Tuesday that two wastewater treatment plants in Virginia’s Stafford County are among more than 100 across the country taking part in a pilot program.

Metabolites in human waste can serve as an early indicator of the disease before it spreads. Sewage offers useful data without collecting personal identifiable information. It also captures virus data from people who displayed mild symptoms or no symptoms.

The study is being led by Biobot Analytics of Somerville, Massachusetts.

Fentanyl seizures plummet as Trump administration shifts focus to immigration

By Maryland Matters
August 22, 2026 | 8:26 PM

WASHINGTON — Fentanyl seizures decreased by 39% during the first year of the second Trump administration after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement shifted the Department of Homeland Security’s criminal investigations arm to conducting immigration enforcement, according to a report government investigators published Friday. Agents with Homeland Security Investigations, a subagency of DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement, reported an “all hands-on deck” environment toward immigration enforcement began in January 2025, according to the DHS Office of Inspector General report. “With ICE dedicating more staff hours to immigration investigations, staffing hours for fentanyl investigations declined,” the report said. The report found that the hours dedicated to fentanyl investigations for fiscal 2025 declined by more than 250,000 hours, or 31%, compared to fiscal 2024.

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