Toxic Waste Left for Decades Discovered on Los Angeles Seabed

A recent study by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego reveals that old barrels left on the seabed near the Los Angeles coast from the 1930s to the 1970s continue to leak toxic substances into the ocean. In addition to containing DDT, these barrels may also hold corrosive alkaline waste. When leaked, this alkaline waste reacts with seawater, altering the surrounding environment’s pH levels and rendering the area strongly alkaline, causing long-term damage to the seabed.