{"id":332630,"date":"2026-07-08T02:46:14","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T02:46:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/332630\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T02:46:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T02:46:14","slug":"tampa-tire-pollution-study-tracks-toxic-chemical-in-hillsborough-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/332630\/","title":{"rendered":"Tampa tire pollution: Study tracks toxic chemical in Hillsborough River"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Tires, \"Tires, Tires, toxins studied in Hillsborough River<\/a> <\/p>\n

Florida International University researchers are examining how rain flushes toxic tire-wear pollutants into the Hillsborough River to help safeguard local ecosystems. FOX 13’s Jennifer Kveglis reports.\u00a0<\/p>\n

TAMPA, Fla. – Florida International University researchers are examining how rain flushes toxic tire-wear pollutants into the Hillsborough<\/a> River to help safeguard local ecosystems.<\/p>\n

Florida tire chemical research <\/p>\n

What we know:<\/p>\n

Florida International University Assistant Research Professor Kassidy Troxell is leading a study on 6PPD, a chemical added to tires to extend their lifespan. As tires wear down, rain events wash tiny tire dust particles into nearby rivers, canals and bays.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

The chemical transforms into a compound called 6PPD-Q, which is highly toxic to some Pacific Northwest salmon species. To understand its local footprint, Troxell and the Ocean Conservancy spent 10 months collecting 50 water samples along the 60-mile river, spanning from the Green Swamp to Hillsborough Bay.<\/p>\n

Urban stormwater contamination <\/p>\n

By the numbers:<\/p>\n

The Environmental Protection Agency benchmark for 6PPD-Q is 11 nanograms per liter. A water sample collected near downtown Tampa measured around 12 nanograms per liter, exceeding that baseline.<\/p>\n

The 10-month study analyzed 50 distinct water samples along the roughly 60-mile span of the river. The highest concentrations appeared in urban areas near stormwater outfalls after long dry periods were followed by heavy rainfall.<\/p>\n

\"\" Regional environmental impact <\/p>\n

Why you should care:<\/p>\n

While the 12 nanograms per liter reading near Tampa is not a major concern yet, researchers say addressing it now is vital. Tracking how these chemical particles move through watersheds will help experts protect vulnerable Florida species and aquatic ecosystems.<\/p>\n

Next research phase <\/p>\n

What’s next:<\/p>\n

The next phase of the university study begins in September, when the research team will collect additional water samples. Scientists are also developing a potential treatment using sargassum-based biochar to actively filter and remove the pollutants from the water.<\/p>\n

The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Florida International University Assistant Research Professor Kassidy Troxell, who explained her 10-month water quality study, as well as an interview conducted by FOX 13 reporter Jennifer Kveglis.<\/p>\n

Hillsborough County<\/a>Environment<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tires, toxins studied in Hillsborough River Florida International University researchers are examining how rain flushes toxic tire-wear pollutants…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":332631,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[1563,47,629,115,135,137,136,628],"class_list":["post-332630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-environment","tag-fl","tag-hillsborough","tag-news","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news","tag-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=332630"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332630\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/332631"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=332630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=332630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=332630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}