Chelsea Rochman – Assistant Professor
I am currently on the faculty in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at University of Toronto.
Previously, I was a David H. Smith Postdoctoral Fellow at the Aquatic Health Program at the University of California, Davis. I received my PhD in a joint program with San Diego State University and UC Davis in Ecology and was advised primarily by Swee Teh and Eunha Hoh. For more about me, please download my CV.
Current Lab Members:
Keenan Munno – Lab Manager & Research Assistant
Keenan is a recent M.Sc. Ecology graduate from the University of Toronto with a particular interest in the fate and effects of microplastics in fish. Her work focused on method development, as well as microplastic ingestion and retention in freshwater fish from the Great Lakes. She obtained her undergraduate degree from Queen’s University in Biology, with a thesis in freshwater oil spill toxicology. She is continuing to pursue her interests in identifying and quantifying microplastics through her work as a Research Associate and Lab Manager in the Rochman lab.
Alice (Xia) Zhu – MSc Student
Alice is thrilled to be working on the issue of microplastics. Alice’s research involves collaborating with the San Francisco Estuary Institute to monitor microplastics in the San Francisco Bay, to model the sources of microplastics entering the Bay, and to propose policies to help protect the Bay from further pollution.
Clara Thaysen – MSc Student
Clara was an undergraduate student in our lab who majored in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Earth Sciences. She is now a MSc student researching the fate of microplastics in aquatic food webs. Her past research in our lab has investigated the potential leaching and toxicity of styrenes and other volatile chemicals from food packaging into food products. This project was in collaboration with 5 Gyres and MOECC. Clara is also continuing and finishing a project investigating plastic ingestion in seagulls and examining the fate of flame retardants to and from plastic debris in the gulls. This project is in collaboration with Miriam Diamond and Jonathan Verreault.
Rachel Giles – MSc Student
Rachel is excited to be studying urban runoff in Toronto streams. This project, in collaboration with Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and the Sinton Lab will investigate how benthic macroinvertebrate communities respond to salt-laden urban runoff during the winter months. This multi-stressor, community-focused approach will complement current research that recognizes tire dust, road salts, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and metals as contaminants with harmful ecological effects.
Kennedy Bucci – PhD Student
Kennedy’s research focusses on the biological and ecological effects of microplastic pollution in freshwater environments. She is currently collaborating with the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MOECC), studying the chemical and physical effects of various microplastics on freshwater fish. Her research goals include investigating the ecosystem-level effects of microplastic pollution using experimental mesocosms.
Lisa Erdle – PhD Student
Lisa researches the effects of microplastics on animals that are part of a Great Lakes food web. In her work, Lisa …read more
Source:: Daily times
