By — PBS News Hour PBS News Hour Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/organizers-scrap-viral-tests-rios-sewage-filled-water-ahead-olympics Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Audio The organizers of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, said this week they do not plan to test the human sewage-laden waterways that will be home to aquatic events for viruses that athletes fear could make them sick. NewsHour's Megan Thompson reports. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. MEGAN THOMPSON: The controversy covers Rio's dirty waterways that will be used for sailing, rowing, canoeing, triathalon and open distance swimming.Rio's Guanabara Bay and other water venues are polluted with trash and untreated human sewage, and independent tests commissioned by the Associated Press in July found high levels of viruses in these waters.Doctors for the U.S. Olympic team blamed water contamination for causing 13 American rowers getting sick during an August practice run on the lake where the rowing competition will be held.Viruses can cause severe stomach and respiratory illnesses that would prevent an athlete from competing, and viruses live longer than bacteria in tropical climate's like Rio's.But Brazils Olympic organizers say the World Health Organization backs them up, that tests for viruses are not needed because of a lack of standardized methods and difficulty interpreting results.Rio 2016 will also save money because viral testing is more expensive and difficult than bacterial testing.As for the trash piling up on the shores of Guanabara Bay, Rio is recruiting volunteers to help pick it up, in exchange for a credit on their electricity bills.Rio's Olympic organizers hope the cleanup efforts will reduce pollution of its waterways by 80 percent before the games begin next summer. Listen to this Segment Watch Watch the Full Episode PBS NewsHour from Oct 18, 2015 By — PBS News Hour PBS News Hour