In collaboration with the Western Snowy plover nest monitors along Ormond, Hollywood, and other State Beaches in Ventura, we will be collecting and testing fecal samples for plastic pollutants.
As well,with the National Park Service project of the Re-introduction of the red-legged frog into the water sheds of the Santa Monica Mountains, we will be testing the water and soil for plastic pollutants.
Since we have found that at least some of the particles along the coastline and in the watersheds are synthetic the likelihood that the origination is anthropogenic is high. I plan to test the samples to see if they contain plastics and if so we hope to use a polarizing microscope to identify them.
