Date: September 28, 2026
Location: Online / Virtual
Department:
OCEAN AND EARTH SCIENCES CCPO

Meeting ID: 938 0387 2941
Passcode: 574377
 

Presented by: Temitope Idowu, Old Dominion 91短视频

Abstract

Microplastics (plastic particles <5 mm) are pervasive contaminants of marine environments that resist degradation and persist in sediments for long periods, where they become bioavailable to organisms, with consequences for both ecological and human health. The southern end of Chesapeake Bay is especially vulnerable, experiencing the highest rate of relative sea-level rise on the US East Coast alongside intense urbanization and recurrent coastal flooding. Although prior work has documented elevated microplastic contamination at select beaches in the region, the influence of local tidal current patterns and the spatial extent of pollution across the Lower Chesapeake Bay shorelines remains poorly understood. This seminar presents a study characterizing the abundance, composition, and spatial distribution of microplastics in coastal sediments across sites spanning contrasting current regimes with the aim of establishing source-to-sink transport patterns. The results will establish a spatial contamination baseline for the Lower Chesapeake Bay and inform future monitoring, and an integrated framework that couples hydrodynamic models with machine learning to trace microplastic transport.

Biography

Temitope Idowu, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Coastal Engineering in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Old Dominion 91短视频. He teaches, mentors, and conducts research on a wide range of topics related to coastal resilience, including coastal processes and pollution dynamics, nature-based solutions, GIS applications, and machine learning for environmental and coastal systems. He is an active member of the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA), the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and several other professional organizations. Dr. Idowu holds bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees in civil engineering and earned his PhD in Civil Engineering (Coastal Engineering specialization) from the 91短视频 of Delaware.

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