Concurrent with a sold-out symposium on Oct 2nd, media outlets, including the Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle, and Los Angeles Times, have released the articles relating the alarming findings regarding the pervasive presence of microplastics in our surface waters. The issue of microplastics is global in nature. However, the advances in understanding the magnitude of the problem are happening regionally through partnerships with 5 Gyres, the University of Toronto Trash Team, and other notable leaders. Among the report's many remarkable insights, the discovery that stormwater is an outsized contributor of microplastic particles represents a major finding which will likely lead to further investigations, discussions, and policy actions.
We welcome you to learn more about the study, its findings, and its media coverage.
- Los Angeles Times - Cars pollute the sea too, with tire rubber
- San Jose Mercury News - Plastic tide: 7 trillion bits wash into bay every year
- San Francisco Chronicle - Huge amounts of plastic, much of it from car tires, washing into SF bay, study finds
Other Individual Contributors
SFEI Scientist Interviewed on Microplastics for Maven's Notebook
Senior scientist Ezra Miller was interviewed in Maven's Notebook about SFEI's groundbreaking microplastics work. Miller discussed where microplastics in San Francisco Bay come from, the biggest unsolved questions our scientists are working on, and why focusing on sources is the best way to prevent microplastic pollution in the Bay.