With multiple efforts underway to get accurate data on the spread of COVID-19, scientists and medical specialists are turning to wastewater-focused epidemiology. Examining the chemical content of wastewater systems is providing researchers a “package of genetic material” that can be used to estimate the prevalence of COVID-19  in various communities or regions, says Rolf Halden, a Fulton Schools professor who directs ASU’s Center for Environmental Health Engineering. Halden and other experts in wastewater research say if this method of investigation can be improved, it can aid not only monitoring of the presence of the coronavirus but also provide strategies to combat future pandemics.