Louisiana Department of Health Selects CDM Smith for $19M Wastewater Surveillance Program

NEW ORLEANS, La.—The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) has selected CDM Smith to support the development and imple­men­ta­tion of a $19 million SARS-CoV-2 wastewater surveil­lance program. The program, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is a statewide wastewater surveil­lance effort to develop capacity to monitor and respond to future outbreaks of SARS-CoV-2 while building a lasting, adaptable platform to support public health in the state. The program will provide equitable support to Louisiana residents, prior­i­tiz­ing communities based on need and vulner­a­bil­ity.

In partnership with LDH, CDM Smith will develop a statewide roadmap to ensure long-lasting analytical capacity is sustained through strength­en­ing capacity in the state public health lab, while relying on university and commercial partners for support. The CDM Smith team is further comple­mented by Dr. Anna Mehrotra, wastewater surveil­lance program director at the Water Environment Federation, to advise on national wastewater surveil­lance best practices, Dr. Tiong Aw of the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine to assist in sampling and analytical stan­dard­iza­tion, and the Louisiana State University School of Public Health to support capacity building, as well as advise on equity in public health policy. Additional part­ner­ships include Louisiana-based minority-owned businesses Integrated Logistical Support Incor­po­rated and Bright Moments, which will provide sampling and public outreach support.

The CDM Smith team is organized to efficiently develop data management and security protocols to make sure wastewater surveil­lance data is securely transferred, managed, and viewable for quick analysis by LDH and program stake­hold­ers. A major innovation of this program is Trinnex’s epiCAST software, an industry-leading data management, analytics, and visu­al­iza­tion tool for wastewater surveil­lance, developed specif­i­cally for rapid integration of field and analytical data, and accurate report generation for prompt transfer of wastewater data trends to local public health authorities. Cutting-edge programs such as these will help promote public health equity and disease mitigation for communities across the country.

CDM Smith provides lasting and integrated solutions in water, environment, trans­porta­tion, energy and facilities to public and private clients worldwide. As a full-service engineering and construc­tion firm, we deliver exceptional client service, quality results and enduring value across the entire project life cycle.