Personal profile
Contact Info
Environment Centre Wales
School of Environmental and Natural Sciences
Bangor University
Bangor LL57 2UW, UK
Phone: +44 (0) 1248 382615
Email: [email protected]
Overview
My research focuses on waterborne enteric viruses, which cause gastrointestinal illness. I study how these viruses are transported and how long they pose a public health threat, particularly in developing regions. I am also interested in how urbanization and climate change impact the diversity of human and animal viruses in aquatic environments.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have been working on wastewater-based epidemiology and eNA solutions, utilizing the One Health approach to track and provide early warnings for human and zoonotic diseases. These include SARS-CoV-2, polioviruses, influenza viruses (such as H5N1 bird flu), and antimicrobial-resistant pathogens. For more details, visit our project website: viraqua.uk.
Researcher Development Concordat Group (RDCG)
I am also the school representative for Bangor University’s RDCG that discusses and recommends actions to support researchers’ professional development to reach teir full potential. We focus on:
- Research environment and culture
- Employment
- Development and wellbeing.
For more information and advice please contact me or visit the following links:
https://my.bangor.ac.uk/humanresources/staffdevelopment/researcherdevelopment/index.php.en
Research
- Human health-related water microbiology
- Environmental virology
- Enteric viruses
- Waterborne pathogens
- Water quality
- Shellfish hygiene
Grant Awards and Projects
Fate of human pathogenic viruses in the environment (2015-2018): http://www.viraqua.uk/
Grant writing fellowship (2018)
Related documents
Education/Academic qualification
Postgraduate, PGCert in HIgher Education Teaching and Learning, Bangor University
Award Date: 1 Dec 2021
Postgraduate, PhD, Microbiology, University of Canterbury
Award Date: 20 May 2014
Postgraduate, MSc, Molecular genetics, Eötvös Loránd University
Award Date: 15 Jan 2007
Keywords
- QR355 Virology
- Environmental science
- Wastewater pollution
- Enteric viruses
- Shellfish hygiene
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
-
SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being
-
SDG 13 Climate Action
Fingerprint
- 1 Similar Profiles
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
-
Predicting norovirus contamination and antimicrobial resistance in coastal waters from community and hospital-derived sources
Clough, T., Silvester, R., Kevill, J., Farkas, K., Malham, S., Cross, G., Robins, P. & Jones, D. L., 1 Jan 2026, In: Water Research. 288, Pt A, 124555.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Analysis Insights to Support the Use of Wastewater and Environmental Surveillance Data for Infectious Diseases and Pandemic Preparedness
O'Reilly, K., Wade, M., Farkas, K., Amman, F., Lison, A., Munday, J., Bingham, J., Mthombothi, Z., Fang, Z., Brown, C., Kao, R. & Danon, L., 1 Jun 2025, In: Epidemics. 51, 100825.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile23 Downloads (Pure) -
Communicating wastewater-based surveillance data to drive action
Farkas, K., Kaya, D., Maal-Bared, R., Al-Mustapha, A. I., Tandukar, S., Keenum, I., Gunnar, T., Bivins, A., Wade, M., Bibby, K., Pitkänen, T. M. & Tiwari, A., 9 Sept 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Journal of Water and Health. 23, 9, p. 1095-1108 14 p., jwh2025080.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile22 Downloads (Pure) -
Comparative impact of sunlight and salinity on human pathogenic virus survival in river, estuarine, and marine water microcosms
Kevill, J., Herridge, K., Li, X., Farkas, K., Malham, S., Robins, P. & Jones, D. L., 5 Mar 2025, In: Water Research. 278, 123411.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile30 Downloads (Pure) -
Evaluation of Three Viral Capsid Integrity qPCR Methods for Wastewater-Based Viral Surveillance
Kevill, J., Farkas, K., Herridge, K., Malham, S. & Jones, D. L., 6 Jan 2025, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Food and Environmental Virology. 17, 12, 12.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile34 Downloads (Pure)
Impacts
-
Adoption of viral environmental surveillance tools to protect public health during the COVID-19 pandemic [REF2021]
Jones, D. (Participant), McDonald, J. (Participant), Farkas, K. (Participant), Malham, S. (Participant), Le Vay, L. (Participant), Jago, C. (Participant), Robins, P. (Participant) & Jones, J. (Participant)
Impact: Economic, Environmental, Health/Quality of life, Policy and Public Services
Projects
- 3 Finished
-
EA - AMR monitoring: Assessment of the presence of aquatic antimicrobial resistance (AMR) across England
Farkas, K. (PI)
2/09/24 → 30/09/25
Project: Research
-
-
Environmental infectivity of SARS-CoV-2: COVID-19 call
Farkas, K. (PI)
1/09/20 → 30/06/21
Project: Research
Datasets
-
Elution and concentration of viruses from sediments
Farkas, K. (Creator), McDonald, J. E. (Creator), Malham, S. K. (Creator) & Jones, D. L. (Creator), ZENODO, 20 Dec 2018
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.2453575, https://zenodo.org/record/2453575
Dataset