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TBS Home2026-01-28T15:11:29+00:00

Tampa Bay Surveillance Project

Investigating contaminants for human and environmental health.

TBS Objectives

  • 1 – Sample sediments, oysters, barnacles, fish, and fishers of Tampa Bay to assess concentrations and seasonal patterns of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) and legacy pollutants.

  • 2 – Determine relationships between contaminant body burdens and a range of health-related effects.

  • 3 – Characterize associations between chemical contaminants.

  • 4 – Survey human consumption patterns focusing on subsistence-level fishers.

  • 5 – Develop quantitative risk assessments for seafood consumption.

  • 6 – Test prototype remediation methodologies.

  • 7 – Inform various City, County, State and Federal agencies.
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Satellite Image of Tampa Bay, Florida

“The Tampa Bay Surveillance Project combines the skills and knowledge of the region’s foremost recreational fishing captains and world class scientists from USF’s College of Marine Science and Eckerd College to evaluate pollution from a wide range of industrial, agricultural and personal care products.”

Steven Murawski, Principal Investigator

Trusted Collaborators

Our Management Technical Advisory Group (MTAG) is comprised of experts in water, environmental, wildlife and human health. The knowledge and perspectives from their respective disciplines and organizations will help guide our research to have the biggest impact on our local communities.

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TBS News

Stay current with our latest updates and announcements.

Way to go, AJ! 👏🌊🦪 Big, belated congratulations to Tampa Bay Surveillance Project team member AJ Gross on receiving a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (NSF GRFP) award, one of the nation’s most prestigious graduate fellowships! 🤯 AJ was one of only five recipients from USF and selected from nearly 14,000 applicants nationwide. Through this fellowship, AJ will continue research at the University of South Florida College of Marine Science studying contaminants and pathogens in Tampa Bay oysters, including PFAS “forever chemicals,” pesticides, norovirus, and Vibrio bacteria. We’re incredibly proud to see AJ recognized for his hard work, dedication, and impactful research. Congratulations, AJ! 🎉 #NSFGRFP #MarineScience #TampaBay #USF #STEM #Research #PFAS
In the weeks following the fire at the @usfmarinescience , we have seen our community show up in extraordinary ways. From lending equipment and workspace, to donating funds, sharing meals, offering encouragement and helping hands, the support from our St. Pete neighbors and beyond has meant more than we can express. We are also deeply grateful to the first responders and, above all, thankful that no one was injured. While recovery and inventory efforts will continue for quite some time, the Tampa Bay Surveillance team remains hopeful and determined. We have been actively involved in salvage efforts and have already returned to the field to continue the work and stay on track with our project objectives. None of this has been easy, and we truly could not do it without all of you. This video captures just a few moments from the past several weeks – including the Ocean of Support fundraiser hosted at @thehubstpete , recovery efforts at CMS, time back out in the field, and a special evening with the larger CMS community at the @tampabayrowdies match on May 23. (And yes, a 3-0 Rowdies win certainly lifts spirits.) We still have a lot to celebrate, and we look forward to continuing to share updates as we regain our footing together. Thank you. 🙏
Next week, the TBS team is headed to #GulfCon in Mobile, Alabama 😁 Many of us will be presenting our research in the session “Shoreside Livelihoods at the Crossroads: Coastal Change, Contaminants, and Community Well-Being”. As scientists, it is important that we share our data and increase our network so that we can broaden our impact. Our goal is to turn knowledge into meaningful action. We love attending this conference to collaborate with and encourage our colleagues all along the Gulf coast! We can’t wait! ✈️🐟💧 #GulfCon #TBSProject #ScienceCommunication #EnvironmentalHealth
What if science data could look (or sound) like ART? Dr. Heather O' Leary has made quite a name for herself and her project, CRESCENDO, gaining data in creative ways with our community! At the 46th Annual Society for Economic Anthropology meeting, our USF anthropologist Heather O’Leary invited participants to turn their perspectives into colorful “oyster” filter-feeders. Each one represented how people think about seafood and environmental health. We’re proud to celebrate Dr. Heather O'Leary for earning the Kate Browne Creativity in Research Award for this innovative work! 🦪✨ Using simple materials like coffee filters and markers, attendees visualized their concerns about: 🌎 The environment 💰 Economic impacts in Gulf regions like Tampa Bay 🗣️ Community conversations around seafood safety The result? A vibrant, collective snapshot of how people connect to planet, prosperity, and people. This approach brings the United Nations’ triple bottom line to life, making complex issues around seafood safety, environmental change, and community perspectives in places like Tampa Bay more visible, accessible, and human. #innovation #anthropology #communityscience #art
🌊 Everyone has a water story - what’s yours? Watershed Stories invites Tampa Bay residents to share personal memories of local waters - from storms and flooding to fishing spots, swimming holes, and everything in between. Through free, hands-on storytelling workshops, you’ll listen to water “come to life” through sound (sonification), reflect on your experiences, and craft your own short story. ✨ Selected stories will be recorded, archived by USF Libraries, and featured in a live showcase in October 2026. 📍 Locations across Tampa Bay 🗓 Saturdays | ⏰ 10 AM – 1 PM 🎟 Free to attend   Come connect, create, and be part of a community story about water. 🔗 Learn more & register - link in story.
Look at our barnacles move! 💃🏼If you want to learn why we’re recruiting barnacles all around Tampa Bay, join the Science in Session Webinar on April 23rd from 2:30-3:30 pm ET. Our very own, Layne Leggett, AKA barnacle queen 👸 will be presenting! Swipe to learn more & click the link in bio/story to register. This video is from Layne’s weekly photography session at our backyard barnacle array 📍Bayboro Harbor
April Fools’! It took a few tries, but Marine Environmental Chemistry Lab manager Ethan Goddard finally caught on. Same outfit. Same energy. Increasing suspicion. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery…and we're sure Ethan agrees 😂
You can’t see PFAS… but they may be in your catch. The Tampa Bay Surveillance Project is looking into it!👀🧪 “Forever chemicals” do not break down easily in the environment. Currently, there are guidelines for PFAS in drinking water, but not in fish. This matters for subsistence fishers especially, because we don’t fully know what levels are safe for people who regularly eat local catch. 💧🐟 Our project chemist, Devon Firesinger, was recently published as an author on the paper titled “PFAS contamination in Florida estuarine fishes: Levels, patterns, and estimated human and ecological health risks”. Click the link in our story to read it. Science isn’t just data, it’s a tool to support our communities. 🧬 #TampaBay #PFAS #ScienceCommunication #fish #environmentalhealth
TBS is collecting oyster samples from Tampa Bay year-round. 🦪➡️🔬 Quarter 3 collections occurred in rather chilly weather, but they sure were fun! 🥶❄️ With a total of 4 field days & help from our local charter captains, the TBS team collected oysters from 19 different sites around the bay. These oysters will eventually be processed and analyzed for contaminants in our lab. The analyses will help us determine the health of our community, invertebrates included! 🌊🦪 #tampabaysurveillance #oysters #fielddayfun
TB REACH at #SDAFS2026 🎣 Dr. Noëlle Boucquey (@eckerdlife) presenting research on accessing wild fisheries in large metropolitan areas at the Southern Division of the @americanfisheries meeting in New Orleans (March 5-8). Her talk explored how people access wild fisheries in large metropolitan areas and what those experiences reveal about shifting environmental conditions. This work is part of the TB REACH study, a companion project within Tampa Bay Surveillance (TBS). #FisheriesScience #Urbanfisheries #Tampabay #AFS
Meet the scientist behind the chemistry powering the Tampa Bay Surveillance Project.👩‍🔬 Dr. Isabel Romero, an organic geochemist, helped build the analytical backbone of our lab by developing the methods we use to track contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in Tampa Bay using tools like the ASE (Accelerated Solvent Extractor) and GC-MS (Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometer). In simple terms: She helps us figure out what chemicals are hiding in Tampa Bay and what they tell us about the health of this community.🧪🐟 From maintaining complex instruments to training students and technicians in quality control, data interpretation, and analytical chemistry, Dr. Romero has shaped how our team studies pollution in the bay. Even though she recently began a new faculty position at the University of South Carolina’s School of the Earth, Ocean and Environment, she remains deeply involved with TBS and continues to mentor our students and help ensure the data we produce is accurate and impactful.🌎 Safe to say… a lot of the science happening in our lab today started with her.🏁 Check out Isabel’s Staff Feature Friday to learn about the role curiosity and persistence have played in her scientific journey, the people and experiences that helped her build confidence as a scientist, and a simplified look at her contributions to the TBS project. 🌊🩵 #TBSProject #environmentalhealth #StaffFeatureFriday
Learn a little about the role of the GCMS (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry) in the Tampa Bay Surveillance Project. 💧📈 Stay tuned for Friday’s Staff Feature👀 #tbsproject #environmentalhealth #GCMS #data
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Funding for this work was made available through award NA23NOS4690261 of the NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science Competitive Research Program to the University of South Florida Tampa Bay Surveillance Project.

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