FILE - This 2020 electron microscope image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows SARS-CoV-2 virus particles which cause COVID-19. The coronavirus mutant that just became dominant in the United States as of May 2022 is a member of the omicron family. But scientists say it spreads faster than its omicron predecessors, is adept at escaping immunity and might possibly cause more serious disease. (Hannah A. Bullock, Azaibi Tamin/CDC via AP, File)

BOSTON (AP) — Boston is planning to establish 11 wastewater testing sites across the city to help monitor for spikes in the COVID-19 virus.

The head of the Boston Public Health Commission said the city is partnering with vendors to create the sites as COVID-19 levels in wastewater across the region have begun rising.

Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Boston’s public health commissioner, said the city will be sampling water from the sites on a weekly basis. Ojikutu said the testing will also help the city monitor for the appearance of new variants of the disease.

Ojikutu made the comments during a Boston City Council meeting Monday according to The Boston Globe.

The city is currently receiving information pulled together from Boston and 22 other nearby locations. City health officials hope the Boston testing sites will help them understand what’s happening at a neighborhood level.

The city is tapping $3.9 million in federal funding to pay for the project.

Coronavirus levels in Eastern Massachusetts wastewater have been on the uptick in recent weeks.

Tracking levels of the virus in wastewaster can serve as a kind of early warning signal, detecting changes even before people are able to be tested and the results reported to public health officials.