COVID-19 BTV Dashboard

The Analytics Team has developed a dashboard to synthesize key information about the impacts of the pandemic, aid local officials in data-driven decision-making, and to help inform residents about our local response efforts. The dashboard is intended to complement the important and timely information that is being shared by the State of Vermont, the City's Resource and Recovery Center, and other research being conducted by the Analytics Team.

Some key data is updated daily, such as charts reflecting COVID-19 cases as reported by the Vermont Dept. of Health, while others are updated less frequently as reporting is made available. Most data will be updated daily or weekly as applicable.

Wastewater Monitoring

Since August of 2020, the City of Burlington has been implementing SARS-CoV2 Wastewater Monitoring Program as an effort to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The technology is used to analyze wastewater samples to look for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA gene copies/fragments. The initiative is a collaboration between the City of Burlington, the Vermont Department of Health (VDH), and participating research partners at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center and the University of Vermont.

The chart below shows the genome copies per liter (y-axis) over time (x-axis). The City is currently working with Dartmouth-Hitchcock and GoAigua, a global water resources firm, to conduct targeted sampling and analysis. GoAigua is helping the City build a public dashboard and map of real-time results that should be available by the end of next week. Case estimates of community infection based on wastewater measurements should not be used in wastewater monitoring as such estimates depend strongly on clinical data describing the concentration of SARS-CoV-2 in feces over the course of infection and in individuals with varying levels of disease severity and few such clinical data are currently available.

Testing for Variants of Concern: On January 13, the City began weekly testing for specific mutations which are associated with the B.1.1..7 variant, which was first detected in the United Kingdom. On February 10, the testing found both of the key mutations in a wastewater sample from the Main plant, which covers the most Burlington, including the Old North End, Hill Section, and South End neighborhoods.

For more information on the Wastewater Monitoring program including additional information on how to interpret results and current data limitations. Please visit the City's Wastewater Monitoring page.

For more information, see the City's Wastewater Monitoring Frequently Asked Questions.

Research Memos

The Analytics Team has prepared a number of research memos on issues related to COVID-19. They contain a review of actions, events, case studies, and/or data based on specific requests of and research by the team. The original audience for these documents was the Mayor and/or members of the City's Emergency Operations Center. These resources are being made available in the event that they are informative for Burlingtonians or other communities.

View the Analytics Team Research Memos

The coronavirus pandemic, and local, state, and federal guidance/orders regarding the pandemic, are rapidly evolving. As such, the information in these documents is presumed to be accurate and reflective of the situation as of the date noted at the top of the document.

Analytics team members

The team is a collaboration of staff for multiple City departments, including:

Nancy Stetson, Senior Policy and Data Analyst, Office of City Planning
Meagan Tuttle, Principal Planner, Office of City Planning
David White, Director, Office of City Planning
Marielle Matthews, Public Health Equity Manager, Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Dept.
Jonno Larson, City Data Analyst, Office of City Planning

COVID-19 BTV Dashboard