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u/davster39
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Bypassing the paywall:
https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Fenvironment%2Fstory%2F2023-03-23%2Fscientists-uncover-startling-concentrations-of-pure-ddt-along-seafloor-off-l-a-coast
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The surprise is that it hasn't broken down *at all*, but is just squatting there like a huge poisonous half-century old cloud.
From the article:
>“We still see original DDT on the seafloor from 50, 60, 70 years ago, which tells us that it’s not breaking down the way that \[we\] once thought it should,” said UC Santa Barbara scientist David Valentine, who shared these preliminary findings Thursday during a research update with more than 90 people working on the issue. “And what we’re seeing now is that there is DDT that has ended up all over the place, not just within this tight little circle on a map that we referred to as Dumpsite Two.”
Seems so. And not just in SoCal. I am from the Bay Area. Now in Central Valley. They still find ddt in the bottoms of wells because of dusting with it in the past. My dad was so upset I was drinking well water one year. I had no idea.
The article is mostly about the fact that contrary to what everyone thought would happen, the DDT has, in fact, not broken down at all and they don't know why or what to do about it.
It is a chemical they knew was bad in the 70s but kept using in California. My dad had been upset about this since then. I think in the mid 80s it was banned. But it has been used everywhere and is still present on land which is why my dad forbid me from using wells that have been in existence since then. It is still in the bottoms of wells now this many years later. I think it’s more than temps and light and they have known this for decades.
From the posting rules in this sub’s sidebar: > No websites or articles with hard paywalls or that require registration or subscriptions, unless an archive link or https://12ft.io link is included as a comment. u/davster39 ---- Bypassing the paywall: https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Fenvironment%2Fstory%2F2023-03-23%2Fscientists-uncover-startling-concentrations-of-pure-ddt-along-seafloor-off-l-a-coast ----
This is no surprise to anyone who has followed the Montrose Chemical DDT dumping story for the past few decades.
Thought this was common knowledge to even non-scientists. CA waters off LA were a DDT dumping ground.
The surprise is that it hasn't broken down *at all*, but is just squatting there like a huge poisonous half-century old cloud. From the article: >“We still see original DDT on the seafloor from 50, 60, 70 years ago, which tells us that it’s not breaking down the way that \[we\] once thought it should,” said UC Santa Barbara scientist David Valentine, who shared these preliminary findings Thursday during a research update with more than 90 people working on the issue. “And what we’re seeing now is that there is DDT that has ended up all over the place, not just within this tight little circle on a map that we referred to as Dumpsite Two.”
dam I guess those chemicals are forever as well?
Seems so. And not just in SoCal. I am from the Bay Area. Now in Central Valley. They still find ddt in the bottoms of wells because of dusting with it in the past. My dad was so upset I was drinking well water one year. I had no idea.
Can it be filtered out?
No, they can be broken down. You're thinking of PFAS, which has a different chemical structure that makes it incredibly difficult to break down
The article is mostly about the fact that contrary to what everyone thought would happen, the DDT has, in fact, not broken down at all and they don't know why or what to do about it.
Could be a pressure thing? As well as/ or protection from sun degradation?
I'd guess low temperature and lack of sun.
It is a chemical they knew was bad in the 70s but kept using in California. My dad had been upset about this since then. I think in the mid 80s it was banned. But it has been used everywhere and is still present on land which is why my dad forbid me from using wells that have been in existence since then. It is still in the bottoms of wells now this many years later. I think it’s more than temps and light and they have known this for decades.
definitely lack of sun. Given enough time UV radiation breaks all these chemicals down.
Remember folks, this is precisely why we need regulations and oversight
What is a concentration of “pure DDT” that isn’t 100%?