1997 view of the Southern California Bight from the International Space Station. Image courtesy of NASA.

Ask an Expert: Briefing on the Sea Grant DDT+ Research Needs Assessment

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Prioritizing research needs and immediate actions to mobilize collaborative deep ocean DDT+ research

 
By Kevin Travis
January 17, 2023
 

You’re invited to a virtual briefing in partnership with California Sea Grant and USC Sea Grant to discuss the recently released report, A Deep Ocean DDT+ Research Needs Assessment for the Southern California Bight. Jointly facilitated by both Sea Grant Programs, this community-driven assessment provides a research agenda for future investments and immediate actions to fill critical gaps in our knowledge about the nature, extent, fate, and impacts of deep ocean DDT+ pollution (i.e, DDT and associated compounds) in the Southern California Bight.

Join us for a Q&A with expert panelists:

Dr. Dave Valentine, UC Santa Barbara
Gabrielle Crowe, Ballona Wetlands Land Trust / Gabrielino-Shoshone Tribal Council
Dr. Pádraig Duignan, The Marine Mammal Center
Jenn Eckerle, Ocean Protection Council

Including Sea Grant Assessment Report Authors:

Dr. Amalia Almada, USC Sea Grant
Dr. Lian Guo, California Sea Grant


Missed the webinar? Watch it here.

California Sea Grant logo University of Southern California Sea Grant logo California State Assembly seal
Presented in Partnership with California Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal

About the Report

The Assessment report highlights a community-driven adaptive framework to inform future investments in deep ocean DDT+ research. Sea Grant facilitated inclusive discussions between the academic community and various local, regional, and state entities to identify diverse perspectives on DDT+ research needs. A primary source of input for this Assessment report, alongside literature review and Community Listening Sessions, was Sea Grant’s 2022 California DDT+ Research Needs Workshop that broadly convened communities managing, studying, or directly affected by deep ocean DDT+ disposal in the Southern California Bight.

The Assessment Report outlines an extensive list of research needs; identification of high priority research needs; a proposed adaptive model of how research areas relate and build on one another; and a synthesis of those immediate actions necessary to effectively mobilize deep ocean DDT+ research in the Southern California Bight. Despite Southern California’s complicated history with DDT+, this Assessment highlights the opportunity for spearheading a new chapter driven by exceptionally collaborative, innovative, and efficient deep ocean DDT+ research.

To learn more about the Sea Grant’s Assessment report, visit Sea Grant’s Story Map.

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