Emerging Contaminants in the Bay: Insights, Innovation, and Inspiration from the 2025 Symposium

Last February, the Alliance hosted the Symposium on Emerging Contaminants in the Bay, in partnership with Morgan State University. This groundbreaking event highlighted cutting-edge research, innovative solutions, and collaborative strategies for tackling issues related to emerging contaminants. By bringing together over 70 participants and speakers from a wide array of backgrounds and sectors, the symposium took a multidisciplinary approach to assessing the state of the science of Emerging Contaminants. As often happens when one spends time in a room filled with dozens of intelligent, accomplished people, I left this event feeling inspired and more equipped to tackle pollution issues in the Chesapeake Bay.

What are Emerging Contaminants?

Emerging contaminants, or Contaminants of Emerging Concern, are substances that are not currently regulated or widely monitored but which pose potential risks to human health and the environment. These chemicals are found in many different everyday products, including personal care products, medicines, household cleaning products, and others. While the research into their impacts is constantly evolving, these substances may have impacts on human health and the environment when they make their way into our water bodies and groundwater. This particular Symposium focused on three major categories of Emerging Contaminants: microplastics, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and pharmaceuticals.

a person speaks into a microphone on a stage

Dr. Chunlei Fan, whose research at the Patuxent Environmental & Aquatic Research Laboratory (PEARL) explores key questions related to the impacts of climate change, nutrient inputs, and eutrophication in coastal ecosystems, answers audience questions as part of the Symposium’s State of the Science Panel.

Strong Science, Strong Solutions

Our understanding of the implications of pollutants is only as good as our ability to monitor them. This is particularly relevant to Emerging Contaminants because many of these substances are novel, which means that researchers are tasked with creating new protocols for assessing them. Dr. Chunlei Fan, Professor of Biology at Morgan State University, is bolstering the scientific understanding of microplastics in the Bay by piloting new approaches to detecting them in water samples.

By using filters with smaller pore sizes, Dr. Fan ‘s innovative research protocols are able to detect microplastics as small as 20 micrometers (which is smaller than a white blood cell!). As a result, Dr. Fan’s study at the Patuxent Environmental and Aquatic Research Laboratory (PEARL) has found higher levels of microplastic pollution than previous studies; 90% of the microplastics they’ve found are smaller than traditional filters could catch, indicating a strong need for more detailed sample collection.

Other panelists on the State of the Science Panel expressed a similar need for addressing gaps in their fields of research. Dr. Joseph Pitula (University of Maryland Eastern Shore) and Dr. Minesinot Jiru (Coppin State University) shared that, as they’ve been conducting their research on PFAS and estrogen contamination, respectively, they’ve been building on a limited body of scientific knowledge in these areas.

Due to how expensive and intensive monitoring is, there is still a huge gap in research, particularly as it relates to human health. Research programs at these universities are essential for helping the scientific and restoration sectors understand the implications of these contaminants for the Bay.

Dr. Samia Kirchner shares insights from her career making, studying, and analyzing architecture that contributes to civic identity. She served on the panel exploring Human Dimensions of Emerging Contaminants, alongside Mr. Fred Tutman, Patuxent Riverkeeper, and Ms. Tanaira Cullens, Environmental Scientist at Biohabitats.

Better Together: Collaborative Partnerships are Key

While academic research is critical, we ultimately activate lasting action and create effective solutions not through sharing statistics and data, but by connecting these issues to community priorities and public health. During one of the Symposium’s two panels, Dr. Samia Kirchner, Associate Professor of Architecture and Urban Design at Morgan State University, shared takeaways from her research on the transformative role of water in city design, urban regeneration, and urban redevelopment. She expressed that connecting communities to their local water bodies is a powerful way to foster lifelong environmental stewardship.

This concept was echoed by Mr. Fred Tutman, the Patuxent Riverkeeper. He emphasized that, although Emerging Contaminants are issues across the watershed, addressing these challenges requires practitioners to have a deep understanding of the hyperlocal cultural and sociopolitical landscape where we work. Therefore, we must commit time to understanding the challenges and resources that matter most to the communities with whom we hope to collaborate.

a person listens intently to a speaker while sitting at a roundtable

More than 70 participants from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds attended this full-day Symposium.

One of the most profound takeaways from the Symposium is the knowledge that, although the challenges involving Emerging Contaminants are complex, we can be successful in tackling them if we work together. Being in community with one another, particularly in collaborative environments like the Symposium, is the first step towards developing the innovative solutions that protect and restore community and ecological wellbeing. Every person has a role to play in this work, and our collective efforts are stronger than anything we could do on our own.

This Symposium, in particular, would not have been possible without the vision, tireless efforts, and unwavering support of our partners at Morgan State University: Ms. Tameka Taylor, Dr. Hungtao Yu, Ms. Simone Baptiste. Thank you also to all of the speakers who shared their time and expertise, and of course to all the attendees who brought their own expertise and energy to the event!