San Diego scientists were collecting routine ocean water samples two weeks ago near Catalina Island when they saw “apocalyptic” plumes of smoke emerge from the mainland.
Over the next few days, the researchers from UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography and NOAA Fisheries would notice fallen ash and burnt debris coating the ocean’s surface up to 100 miles offshore.
Now the crew is collecting samples of ash from surrounding waters to measure how toxins and urban debris from the Los Angeles wildfires could affect nearby fisheries and the food webs of local ecosystems.
“These fires pose a potential significant threat to both humans and ecosystems through the introduction of a large amount of toxic material in the system,” said Julie Dinasquet, project leader at Scripps Institute of Oceanography.
Wildfire ash entering the ocean is not uncommon, but experts warn that the ash from Los Angeles fires could contain harmful materials like lead, asbestos, arsenic, microplastics and other synthetics.
“Seeing it snowing, but knowing it wasn’t snow but ash was really eerie,” said Rasmus Swalethorp, director of ship operations. “It seemed apocalyptic. I can only imagine how it must have been on land.”
Dinaquet and her team are sampling surface water and ocean layers up to 330 feet deep to observe how sinking ash particles can impact the ecosystem.
Some of the charred material the crew observed was nearly two inches long, Dinaquet said.
The sampling collection project was originally a part of the quarterly California Cooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigations that began in 1949 to understand the decline of California’s sardine population during World War II.
The program has since made coastal California one of the most extensively studied ocean regions in the world and provides a decades-long baseline of ocean conditions.
NOAA Fisheries’ scientists will use this sample database to watch for potential effects on fisheries and marine life, including anchovy eggs abundant in waters downwind of the fires.
“We have painstakingly saved archives of samples with treasure troves of information,” said Noelle Bowlin, NOAA Fisheries’ CalCOFI Director. “Any time there is a question, we can turn to the samples and see what changed.”
The crew aboard NOAA ship Reuben Lasker left San Diego on Jan. 3 and identified fallen ash after Jan. 8 near Santa Monica Bay, San Nicolas Island and off the coast of Ventura.
New crew members brought additional, specialized equipment to quantify the ash particles in the water and analyze them for trace metal when the ship stopped in San Luis Obispo on Jan. 18.
The crew re-sampled the most affected area just off of Santa Monica Bay. Further testing will look for traces of toxic materials in the tissue of organisms from plankton to larger fishes.
Smaller organisms like phytoplankton and bacteria will likely be the first to be affected by any toxins.
“We are trying to make some positive research out of this dramatic situation,” Dinasquet said.
The resampling team brought together fire, marine and atmospheric science experts from across the country as project members work to secure more funding for this new enterprise.
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