RICHMOND, Va. — The Virginia Department of Health will be monitoring sewage in various parts of the state in an effort to predict future outbreaks of COVID-19.

The Danville Register & Bee reported Saturday that VDH is deploying up to 25 wastewater monitoring sites across the commonwealth.

Testing sewage can help health officials gauge COVID-19 infection in a community. That’s because people who are sick shed the virus in bodily waste.

The sewage monitoring will complement other programs that monitor COVID-19 infection in the state’s communities.

The goal is to provide warnings before a surge begins. This kind of testing of wastewater isn’t new. It’s been used for other infectious diseases, such as polio.