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Concerns continue over toxic metal concentrations following Moss Landing battery fire

Elkhorn Slough Reserve near Moss Landing.
Krista Almanzan
/
KAZU News
Elkhorn Slough Reserve near Moss Landing.

Researchers have found unusually high concentrations of toxic heavy metals in surface soils at Elkhorn Slough Reserve in Moss Landing.

Nearly two weeks after a lithium-ion battery fire broke out just a few miles from Elkhorn Slough, a group at San Jose State University’s Moss Landing Marine Laboratories found levels of nickel, manganese, and cobalt that were hundreds to 1,000 times higher than baseline.

Geological oceanographer Ivano Aiello led the research and said the evidence points to the battery fire as the most likely reason for these high concentrations.

"Those metals, which are known to be toxic...might start moving across habitats," Aiello said. "So our concern and our goal is to figure out...whether and how they might actually enter the food webs."

Monterey County has conducted its own soil and water testing with help from the state and said Wednesday it plans to release preliminary results by the end of this week.

Aiello's research also caught the attention of the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors.

"This statement from San Jose State University that they’ve identified elevated levels of heavy metals in our estuary is extremely concerning," said District 1 Supervisor Manu Koenig during a Jan. 28 Board of Supervisors meeting.

The board voted unanimously to formally request an independent investigation of the Vistra battery fire that broke out on Jan. 16.

Monterey County supervisors agreed to add tougher state regulation of battery storage facilities to their list of priorities for the year during their meeting on Jan. 28.

Elena is a reporter and California Local News Fellow at KAZU. Before that, they worked as a podcast producer at The Oregonian. Their reporting and research has been featured on NPR's Code Switch, KQED, Netflix, Reveal, CalMatters, and more. Elena is an alum of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism and UC Santa Cruz.
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