Microplastic Pollution: Impact on the SF Bay Delta and Remediation Strategies

About the Event:

The UC Davis Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute and the Delta Science Program hosted a one-day symposium exploring the impacts of microplastics on aquatic ecosystems, with a focus on the heavily urbanized San Francisco Bay Delta and its diverse habitats. Attendees learned about how these tiny pollutants affect organisms and discuss challenges in studying them and strategies for remediation and standardization.

Watch the Recordings:

Part One

Part Two

Agenda

Part One:

9:00 Welcome - Christina Pasparakis, UC Davis

9:15 Keynote Talk - “Everything, everywhere, all at once: Understanding micro and nanoplastic impacts in marine organisms and beyond” Susanne Brander, Oregon State University

9:45 Q&A Discussion followed by break

10:15 "Research related to characterization of microplastics in Lake Tahoe" Jenessa Gjeltema, UC Davis

10:35 "Effects of microplastics on pathogen ecology in the nearshore" Karen Shapiro, UC Davis

10:55 Student Talk Session

“The toxicity of 6PPD-quinone, a tire-derived contaminant, to aquatic species of conservation concern” - Jackie Lang

“Determining the extent of microplastics infiltration into a protected marine environment” - Zeke Spooner

Accumulation of Microplastics in the Littoral-Shoreline: Analysis of Rock Rings, Shoreline Surface Water and Macrophytes” - Ashlyn Nance

Part Two:

12:55 "Comparative risk assessment of microplastics, pesticides and other stressors in the SF Delta and Bay" Wayne Landis, Western Washington University

1:15 “Monitoring microplastics to inform management in San Francisco Bay” Ezra Miller, SFEI

1:35 Break

1:50 "A Comprehensive Probabilistic Framework for Deriving Microplastic Hazard Thresholds: Development and Application to Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems with ToMEx 2.0 Data" Scott Coffin, OEHHA EPA

2:10 “Reducing plastic production as a primary solution to microplastic pollution” Neil Tangri, UC Berkeley

2:30 Break

2:45 Keynote Talk - “The fate of microplastics in a whole lake ecosystem experiment - informing monitoring and risk assessment” Chelsea M. Rochman, University of Toronto

3:15 Q&A and Summary Discussion

4:15 End

Planning Team:

• Christina Pasparakis, UC Davis Environmental Toxicology
• Sascha Nicklisch, UC Davis Environmental Toxicology
• Amelie Segarra, UC Davis Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology
• Zeke Spooner, UC Davis Graduate Group in Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry
• Moose O'Donnell, UC Davis Coastal and Marine Sciences Institute
• Denise Colombano, Delta Stewardship Council
• Stephen Elser, Delta Stewardship Council
• Maggie Christman, Delta Stewardship Council
• Miranda Tilcock, Delta Stewardship Council

Cover image courtesy of Zeke Spooner