25,000 Barrels Suspected to Contain DDT Chemicals Found Off California Coast

In this March 2021 image provided by Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, researchers aboard the research vessel Sally Ride recover an autonomous underwater vehicle after a search for discarded barrels near Santa Catalina Island, Calif. Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego via AP

SAN DIEGO—Marine scientists say they have found what they believe to be more than 25,000 barrels that possibly contain DDT dumped off the Southern California coast near Catalina Island, where a massive underwater toxic waste site dating back to World War II has long been suspected.

The 27,345 “barrel-like” objects were captured in high-resolution images as part of a study by researchers at the University of California San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography.