Omicron was found in Nova Scotia wastewater weeks before it was discovered by the province — and even before the novel COVID-19 strain was reported by South Africa, according to new research from Dalhousie University in Canada.

Explaining the situation, Professor Graham Gagnon, director of the Dalhousie University Centre for Water Resource Studies, said that “Our team detected Omicron , retrospectively, in Nova Scotia wastewater in mid-November and will be able to provide further information in the future.”

In late November, the first Omicron case was reported in South Africa.

On December 13, the first cases in Nova Scotia were confirmed, and they were related to a COVID-19 epidemic at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish.
https://leadingreporters.com/omicron-was-in-canadian-wastewater-in-november-before-it-was-found-in-south-africa/