Sydney recorded its 11th consecutive day without any new instances of community transmission on October 6, but despite this promising milestone, the state's health experts have expressed concern that there is evidence that undiagnosed cases could still be spreading the virus in Sydney, undetected. As part of the efforts put in place to contain potential outbreaks, wastewater from Sydney's sewer system has been repeatedly checked for signs of the virus, and despite the lack of diagnosed cases, fragments of viral DNA are still being discovered in concerning concentrations in certain parts of the city.
The North Richmond and West Camden treatment plants, which deal with waste from Hawkesbury and South West Sydney, continue to produce evidence of the virus, which experts say could mean active cases remain in both catchment areas. However, a question mark hangs over whether this evidence poses a threat to Sydney, as recovered patients can shed genetic material from the virus for weeks after their recovery, so the signs of spread from Sydney's sewers could in fact be related to already recorded cases that have since been declared recovered. However, experts are questioning this scenario as no active cases have been officially recorded in North Richmond in many weeks, despite the recent presence of viral DNA in the sewerage.
The only way to know for certain is through conventional swab testing, but levels of testing in Sydney have dramatically decreased in recent weeks. Despite setting a daily target earlier this year of administering 8,000 - 10,000 tests a day, daily rates have slumped to almost half of this volume; the state reported 5385 tests during the 24-hour reporting period between October 4-5, and just 4789 tests the previous day. In a statement issued by NSW Health, department spokesperson Dr Christine Selvey issued an appeal to the communities of Hawkesbury and South West Sydney to come forward for testing, even if symptoms are mild, such as "a slightly runny nose, a scratchy throat, or cough."
NSW is under pressure to maintain its current winning streak of no community transmission in order to regain access to Queensland. QLD premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has said that the border between the two states will reopen on November 1, but only if NSW can demonstrate it has gone 28 days without a single instance of locally acquired infection. NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian has repeatedly criticised Palaszczuk for setting such an "unreasonable" target.