{"id":5547,"date":"2026-03-20T18:39:17","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T18:39:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/?post_type=news&#038;p=5547"},"modified":"2026-03-20T19:16:17","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T19:16:17","slug":"new-report-on-l-a-post-fire-beach-contamination-finds-something-unexpected-good-news","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/new-report-on-l-a-post-fire-beach-contamination-finds-something-unexpected-good-news\/","title":{"rendered":"New report on L.A. post-fire beach contamination finds something unexpected: good news"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/archinect.com\/alex\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull is-style-light-gray has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-82641648 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained is-style-light-gray--1\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--70);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--70)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns aligngrid is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:55%\">\n<p class=\"is-style-default tribe-news-single-overline\" style=\"margin-top:0\"><span class=\"is-color-blue\">News<\/span><span class=\"separator\"> | <\/span><span>LA Times<\/span><span class=\"separator\"> | <\/span><span>March 2026<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n<h1 style=\"padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0;margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);\" class=\"wp-block-post-title\">New report on L.A. post-fire beach contamination finds something unexpected: good news<\/h1>\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-large is-style-large--2\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50)\">Researchers investigating the long-term effects of the 2025 firestorms on L.A.\u2019s beaches have found that rarest of things: good news.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the year following the Palisades and Eaton fires, levels of harmful metals like lead in coastal sand and seawater have remained far below California\u2019s limits for safe drinking water and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s safety thresholds for aquatic life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re not seeing any evidence for harm in the ecosystem or harm for human health,\u201d said Noelle Held, a University of Southern California marine biogeochemist and principal investigator for the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/project\/clean_waters\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CLEAN Waters project<\/a>, which is measuring post-fire water quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-outlined tribe-button-has-icon is-style-outlined--3\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/environment\/story\/2026-03-20\/new-report-on-la-post-fire-beach-contamination-good-news\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Read the full article on the LA Times<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:45%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full has-custom-border\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/LAT-Article-Photo.jpeg\" alt=\"A hand in a clear glove collects a sand sample\" class=\"wp-image-5549\" style=\"border-radius:16px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/LAT-Article-Photo.jpeg 2000w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/LAT-Article-Photo-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/LAT-Article-Photo-1024x682.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/LAT-Article-Photo-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/LAT-Article-Photo-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/03\/LAT-Article-Photo-1619x1080.jpeg 1619w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Noelle Held, a microbiologist from USC, collects a sand sample at Will Rogers State Beach in Santa Monica on June 1, 2025. (Hon Wing Chiu \/ For The Los Angeles Times)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group aligngrid is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"is-style-small is-style-small--4\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30)\">Filed under<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span class=\"c-tag-list\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-tag-list__item t-category c-tag-list__item--green\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/?_practice_area=climate-sustainability\" class=\"c-tag-list__item-link\">Climate &amp; Sustainability<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-tag-list__item t-category c-tag-list__item--brown\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/?_practice_area=disaster-response\" class=\"c-tag-list__item-link\">Disaster Response<\/a>\n\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-9bcb33e3 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--70);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--70)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group aligngrid is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\" style=\"margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-space-between is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-9366075c wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading is-style-overline is-style-overline--5\">Related News<\/h2>\n\n\n<div style=\"margin-top:0;\" class=\"wp-block-buttons wp-block-tribe-explore-all-news-button\">\n\t<div class=\"b-explore-news-button wp-block-button is-style-outline tribe-button-has-icon\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\" class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\">Explore all news<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);margin-bottom:0\"\/>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"b-related-news b-related-news--layout-grid aligngrid aligngrid wp-block-acf-related-news\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"c-news-card\">\n\t<ul class=\"c-tag-list c-news-card__tags\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"c-tag-list__item t-category c-tag-list__item--brown\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/?_practice_area=disaster-response\" class=\"c-tag-list__item-link\">Disaster Response<\/a>\n\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<div class=\"c-news-card__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__image\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"648\" src=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/fires-image-1024x648.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"THe image shows the frame a burnt tricycle next to a pile of ash, following a fire.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/fires-image-1024x648.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/fires-image-300x190.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/fires-image-768x486.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/fires-image.jpeg 1344w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__content\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"c-news-card__title t-display-x-small\">Concerned about fire contaminants in your soil? A new expert guide can help<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-news-card__metadata\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-outlet t-category\">LAist<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-separator t-category\">|<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-post-date t-category\">August 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/concerned-about-fire-contaminants-in-your-soil-a-new-expert-guide-can-help\/\" class=\"c-news-card__link-overlay\">Read more about Concerned about fire contaminants in your soil? A new expert guide can help<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"c-news-card\">\n\t<ul class=\"c-tag-list c-news-card__tags\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"c-tag-list__item t-category c-tag-list__item--brown\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/?_practice_area=disaster-response\" class=\"c-tag-list__item-link\">Disaster Response<\/a>\n\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<div class=\"c-news-card__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__image\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story-1024x576.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"A man and woman standing in the foreground, looking out at rubble in the aftermath of a fire\" srcset=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story-768x432.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story-680x383.jpeg 680w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story-1280x720.jpeg 1280w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/usc-clean-reports-story.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__content\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"c-news-card__title t-display-x-small\">After the Palisades and Eaton fires, USC research offers new answers for communities as they rebuild<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-news-card__metadata\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-outlet t-category\">USC News<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-separator t-category\">|<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-post-date t-category\">August 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/after-the-palisades-and-eaton-fires-usc-research-offers-new-answers-for-communities-as-they-rebuild\/\" class=\"c-news-card__link-overlay\">Read more about After the Palisades and Eaton fires, USC research offers new answers for communities as they rebuild<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"c-news-card\">\n\t<ul class=\"c-tag-list c-news-card__tags\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"c-tag-list__item t-category c-tag-list__item--green\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/?_practice_area=climate-sustainability\" class=\"c-tag-list__item-link\">Climate &amp; Sustainability<\/a>\n\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<div class=\"c-news-card__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__image\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"646\" src=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/IMG_7924cinematicphotosediting-unicornproductionsLA-skysthelimitvideos@gmailcom-scaled-1-1024x646.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"A yellow tend shades a grassy area during a World Cup Watch Party in LA\" srcset=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/IMG_7924cinematicphotosediting-unicornproductionsLA-skysthelimitvideos@gmailcom-scaled-1-1024x646.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/IMG_7924cinematicphotosediting-unicornproductionsLA-skysthelimitvideos@gmailcom-scaled-1-300x189.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/IMG_7924cinematicphotosediting-unicornproductionsLA-skysthelimitvideos@gmailcom-scaled-1-768x485.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/IMG_7924cinematicphotosediting-unicornproductionsLA-skysthelimitvideos@gmailcom-scaled-1-1536x969.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/IMG_7924cinematicphotosediting-unicornproductionsLA-skysthelimitvideos@gmailcom-scaled-1.jpeg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__content\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"c-news-card__title t-display-x-small\">Hot or Not? World Cup edition<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-news-card__metadata\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-outlet t-category\">Torched LA<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-separator t-category\">|<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-post-date t-category\">August 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/hot-or-not-world-cup-edition\/\" class=\"c-news-card__link-overlay\">Read more about Hot or Not? World Cup edition<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"c-news-card\">\n\t<ul class=\"c-tag-list c-news-card__tags\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"c-tag-list__item t-category c-tag-list__item--brown\">\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/?_practice_area=disaster-response\" class=\"c-tag-list__item-link\">Disaster Response<\/a>\n\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<div class=\"c-news-card__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__image\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/boyle-heights-warehouse-1024x576.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"overhead shot of smoke billowing from the Lineage warehouse fire.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/boyle-heights-warehouse-1024x576.webp 1024w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/boyle-heights-warehouse-300x169.webp 300w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/boyle-heights-warehouse-768x432.webp 768w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/boyle-heights-warehouse-680x383.webp 680w, https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/boyle-heights-warehouse.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-news-card__content\">\n\t\t\t<h3 class=\"c-news-card__title t-display-x-small\">USC is offering free soil testing amid Boyle Heights pollution concerns<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-news-card__metadata\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-news-card__metadata-post-date t-category\">July 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/usc-is-offering-free-soil-testing-amid-boyle-heights-pollution-concerns\/\" class=\"c-news-card__link-overlay\">Read more about USC is offering free soil testing amid Boyle Heights pollution concerns<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>News | LA Times | March 2026 Researchers investigating the long-term effects of the 2025 firestorms on L.A.\u2019s beaches have found that rarest of things: good news. In the year following the Palisades and Eaton fires, levels of harmful metals like lead in coastal sand and seawater have remained far below California\u2019s limits for safe&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":5549,"template":"","practice":[10,17],"class_list":["post-5547","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>New report on L.A. post-fire beach contamination finds something unexpected: good news - USC<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/news\/new-report-on-l-a-post-fire-beach-contamination-finds-something-unexpected-good-news\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New report on L.A. post-fire beach contamination finds something unexpected: good news - USC\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"News | LA Times | March 2026 Researchers investigating the long-term effects of the 2025 firestorms on L.A.\u2019s beaches have found that rarest of things: good news. 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