Trying to destroy coronavirus? The World Health Organization says get to scrubbing! Twenty seconds at the sink should do it. But what if you don’t have soap… or clean water?

As cities have developed, water sources and waste streams develop with them. Even Paris began as a cesspool of typhoid and other diseases. For areas still developing, this poses a real challenge in times of extra handwashing. What can we learn from history, and how can that help our future?

Written and reported by Brenna Biggs.

References:

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   Kepnes, M. Unusual Place of the Month: Paris Sewers. Nomadic Matt (2018).

   
   
   
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   Hugo, V. Les Misérables. A. Lacroix, Verboeckhoven & Cie (1862).

   
   
   
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   Lesté-Lasserre, C. Coronavirus found in Paris sewage points to early warning system. Science (2020).

   
   
   
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   Singhal, S. Every drop counts in these times of COVID-19. Down to Earth (2020).

   
   
   
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   Gharib, M., Huang, P. 6 Solutions To Beat COVID-19 In Countries Where The Usual Advice Just Won't Work. NPR (2020).

   
   
   
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   1 in 3 people globally do not have access to safe drinking water – UNICEF, WHO. WHO (2019).