The Department of Biological Sciences welcomes 

Dr. Brendan F. O’Leary

Research Scientist 

Center for Leadership in Environmental Awareness and Research - CLEAR

Wayne State University 

From Legacy Pollution to Present-Day Exposure: Environmental Health in Detroit

Detroit’s industrial legacy continues to shape present-day environmental exposures through contaminated land, groundwater, aging infrastructure, and pathways that connect the subsurface environment to homes and communities. This talk will explore how environmental engineering, geospatial analysis, field monitoring, and emerging data-science approaches can be combined to better characterize these complex urban exposure pathways. Drawing on research across Detroit, examples will include mapping legacy contamination, evaluating groundwater and sewer-mediated transport, measuring volatile organic compounds in residential environments, and linking environmental conditions with population health indicators. The talk will also highlight new approaches for transforming historical environmental records into actionable exposure data and identifying communities where multiple environmental stressors may overlap. Together, this work illustrates how understanding the movement and persistence of legacy pollution can help inform more targeted monitoring, remediation, and strategies to reduce environmental health risks in urban communities.

Hosted by Dr. Markus Friedrich

This seminar will be streamed live. For a zoom link, please contact Dr. Eleni Gourgou at elenigourgou@wayne.edu.