DES MOINES, Iowa (WHO) — Over the summer the City of Des Moines participated in a study where samples of wastewater were taken to see COVID-19 concentration in the water.

Just last week, the Des Moines Metro Wastewater Reclamation Authority (WRA) recorded the highest virus concentration throughout the span of the study, which can be found here. The purpose of the study is to see what the COVID-19 case count could look like in the area.

The last time that the WRA recorded a peak in virus concentration in wastewater was back in September, which coincided with the peak in COVID-19 cases in the month. An employee of the WRA said that the results from just this last week were unexpected.