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Kate Spencer

@profkatespencer.bsky.social
626 followers 624 following 78 posts

Academic interested in pollution, saltmarsh, coasts, estuaries, muddy sediment and microplastics, legacy waste, historic landfill. Professor of Environmental Geochemistry at Queen Mary University of London. #tonsilcancer

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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
There are lots of approaches for using these kind of technologies to stabilise pollutants in contaminated land.
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Leana Hosea @leanahosea.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
On 20 May, I'll be part of a webinar on pollution from historic landfill across Europe We'll be discussing the joint investigation on old landfill by @watershed-i.bsky.social + @investigate-europe.eu If you'd like to join us, please follow the link below 👇🏾 eu01web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
Europe's toxic legacy 
How historic landfills harm communities today 
20 May 2026
16:00 - 17:00 CEST 
Speakers:
Juliet Ferguson, Investigate Europe, Kriton Arsensis, Founder, reLife Earth, Théo Tostivint, Surfrider Foundation Europe, Luke Douglas-Home, Environmental Campaigner, Leana Hosea, Watershed Investigations
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
There are some pilot sites across Europe but the metals need to be concentrated enough to make it economically viable. The problem with these old sites is that they’re ‘mixed’ so valuable metals have to be separated from everything else.
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WATERSHED Investigations @watershed-i.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
- Cancers - unexplained scarring on the lungs - impaired fetal growth - premature birth - heart disease Canadian doctors warn of alarming health trends near fracking sites: share.google/Y3bkaYqgOUfb...
share.google
B.C. Doctors Flag Alarming Health Trends Near Fracking Sites
Researchers met with the city of Dawson Creek in British Columbia to share insights about how fracking in the region is affecting public health.
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Rachel Salvidge @rachelsalvidge.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
After a decade as a de facto poop correspondent, it was great to see the sewage scandal brought together in Channel 4’s brilliant drama Dirty Business. Even if you think you know the story, watch it. I’ve tried to sum up the whole malodorous affair here: watershedinvestigations.com/a-decade-ins...
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
#HPV awareness day. HPV driven throat cancers are increasing in 40-50 year olds. With early detection they respond well to treatment so know the symptoms - neck lump, change in voice/swallow, change in appearance of tonsils. Even better get vaccinated and vaccinate your kids. #HPVawareness #cansky
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WATERSHED Investigations @watershed-i.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
Map of parts of the UK with potential for fracking exploration (British Geological Survey). There's a current pause on fracking in the UK & the government is considering making it illegal. Reform, however, have pledged to license fracking if elected. nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/51...
British Geological Survey of potential fracking zones, UK
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
Evidence for large-scale #microplastic pollution of the human body is pretty weak. Biological pathways are implausible and analytical protocols still under development. But this doesn’t address the media’s role in hyping claims - often ignoring research caveats www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
‘A bombshell’: doubt cast on discovery of microplastics throughout human body
Exclusive: Some scientists say many detections are most likely error, with one high-profile study called a ‘joke’
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
Still a few days to submit your abstract to #EGU26. Join our session if you work at the intersection of pollution and climate change
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
If you didn’t catch their reporting first time around - @watershed-i.bsky.social have done some really comprehensive and eye opening work mapping Europe’s waste sites. @qmulsse.bsky.social
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
This is exactly the problem. The legislation requiring this engineering design came in much later
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Depressing - yet absolutely fascinating and it amazes us how many people come to rummage through the waste. They’re our #futurefossils
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Fortunately wave action disperses the material but it’s still released into the marine environment
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Watch this space - important work on this about to be released by Defra…we proposed methods to prioritise sites back in 2018 link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com
Client Challenge
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Jo Rhodes @drjorhodes.com · 12/12/2025
Come to Birmingham and do a PhD with myself and @wvschaik.bsky.social!
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Josh Ahmed @geomorphicjosh.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Join @profkatespencer.bsky.social, John MacDonald & I in Vienna at @egu.eu for our session on Chemicals and Climate Change where we want to consolidate our knowledge on how changes in hydrology & hydrodynamics will impact future contaminant mobility @egu-gm.bsky.social ⬇️ www.egu26.eu/session/56805
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Science X / Phys.org @sciencex.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Modeling indicates that buoyant plastic can persist at the ocean surface for over a century, gradually fragmenting and sinking, with long-term impacts on marine ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles. doi.org/g97r6d
phys.org
Plastic pollution could linger at ocean surfaces for over a century, new research finds
Scientists from the Department of Geography and Environmental Science at Queen Mary University of London have developed a simple model to show how buoyant plastic can settle through the water column and they predict it could take over 100 years to remove plastic waste from the ocean's surface.
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Patrick Marques @pmarques35.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
[1/8] DEs chercheurs de l'Université Queen Mary de Londres présentent un modèle inédit pour comprendre le destin des plastiques flottants. Leur étude relie la fragmentation en microplastiques et leur lente descente vers les fonds marins. #geography #ocean #pollution #plastic
royalsocietypublishing.org
Coupling fragmentation to a size-selective sedimentation model can quantify the long-term fate of buoyant plastics in the ocean | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physi...
Plastic pollution in the ocean is a global environmental issue, with buoyant debris accumulating at the surface and posing long-term ecological threats. Although sediments are the ultimate sink for pl...
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Patrick Marques @pmarques35.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
[1/8] Kate Spencer et Nan Wu (Queen Mary University of London) étudient le devenir des plastiques dans l’océan. Leur modèle explique le mystère du "plastique manquant" en montrant comment il migre lentement vers les grands fonds. #geography #pollution #microplastics #ocean
theconversation.com
Scientists have puzzled over what happens to plastic as it breaks down in the ocean – our new study helps explain the mystery
Some plastic pollution lingers at the ocean’s surface for more than a century.
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Damian Carrington @dpcarrington.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
UK and Europe’s hidden landfills at risk of leaking toxic waste into water supplies - Rising flood risks driven by climate change could release chemicals from ageing sites – posing threats to ecosystems Story by @leanahosea.bsky.social and Juliet Ferguson www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK and Europe’s hidden landfills at risk of leaking toxic waste into water supplies
Exclusive: Rising flood risks driven by climate change could release toxic waste from ageing sites – posing threats to ecosystems
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 03/12/2025
It’s not just flood risks - drought and wildfire could damage structural integrity and rising temp can change pollutant uptake and mobility
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
@qmul.bsky.social @qmgeogsoc.bsky.social @qmulsse.bsky.social @emmahardymp.bsky.social @earlrussell.bsky.social @thecccuk.bsky.social
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
1000s of historic landfills across Europe - many in groundwater protection zones and highly vulnerable to flooding and erosion. We are just not adequately assessing the potential risks of climate change on our waste legacy.
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Leana Hosea @leanahosea.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
Watch @itvnews.bsky.social tonight, as Martin Stew covers our joint report with @investigate-europe.eu on pollution from landfills in the UK + Europe - many so old they're not lined or filtered - in flood risk, coastal erosion or drinking water protection zones. www.itv.com/news/2025-12...
ITV News, Martin Stew, 'Potential leaks from thousands of landfills threaten Europe's water and wildlife'
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
@margaretmullanemp.bsky.social @earlrussell.bsky.social @leanahosea.bsky.social @watershed-i.bsky.social
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
Not only do these waste criminals avoid landfill tax, but they are also avoiding all the checks and balances that protect people and the environment from the pollutants it contains. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
At least 8,000 illegal waste sites in UK, research suggests
Exclusive: Concerns over impact on health and environment, as well as £1.63bn in avoided landfill tax
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
We certainly have the tools to deal with many of these issues. But the scale of the problem is overwhelming and we just don't have the resources to monitor, regulate and, if needed, remediate all of these sites. We also don't value the lived experience of those of have to live alongside these dumps.
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 14/09/2025
This is pretty unbelievable - I really thought landfill leachate was better managed.
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George McGavin @georgemcgavin.bsky.social · 26/08/2025
Does anyone in the South of England have a wasp nest in their garden they would wish removed anytime in the next five weeks? This research led by Dr Bob Brown @dr-bob-brown.bsky.social, is helping with control of invasive wasps in New Zealand.
Entomologist, wearing protective clothing, excavates the nest of a social wasp.
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 26/08/2025
Under the right conditions - such as landfills - plastics could take millennia to degrade. Potentially forming future ‘techno fossils’. Fascinating read from Sarah Gabbot. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Understanding environmental impacts of plastic requires a palaeontological lens - Nature Ecology & Evolution
Growing evidence suggests that timescales for plastic degradation have been vastly underestimated. The fossil record of plastic-like biopolymers might provide a perspective on plastic fossilization in...
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Dr Ry Holland @rythemicroguy.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
How can we assess whether microbial degradation of plastic pollution has occurred? Our new systematic review, led by Jennifer Scott, assesses a multitude of methods & makes recommendations to improve study design @heriotwattuni.bsky.social authors.elsevier.com/sd/article/S0048-9697(25)01917-5
A figure from the review paper listing methods for assessing plastic biodegradation. They are grouped into three clusters: physical changes, chemical changes, and products produced/consumed.
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Natalie Bennett @nataliegreenpeer.bsky.social · 16/08/2025
What a mess we have made of this #PoisonedPlanet, and #PublicHealth. "Research found connections among Pfas-related gene changes and biological pathways involved in leukemia, bladder, liver, thyroid and breast cancers, Alzheimer’s, lupus, asthma & tuberculosis" www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Exposure to some common Pfas changes gene activity, new study finds
Findings help decipher mechanisms through which ‘forever chemicals’ cause disease, aiding in treating health problems
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Natalie Bennett @nataliegreenpeer.bsky.social · 16/08/2025
We're just starting to understand the #biodiversity we are fast trashing. "Cryoconite granules - frozen rainforests”. Each is a self-sustaining ecosystem, containing diverse bacteria, fungi, viruses, protists & even tiny animals like tardigrades & worms" www.theguardian.com/world/2025/a...
theguardian.com
Arctic glaciers face ‘terminal’ decline as microbes accelerate ice melt
Scientists in Svalbard in race to study polar microbes as global heating threatens fragile glacial ecosystems
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ICES - International Council for the Exploration of the Sea @icesmarine.bsky.social · 14/08/2025
Are you ready for a leadership role where science meets impact? If you see yourself as the next Head of Advice at ICES Secretariat, make sure you get your application in soon! The deadline to apply for this position is Sunday 17 August 2025! 🔗 Apply here www.ices.dk/about-ICES/J...
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Anson Mackay (they/them) @ans.bsky.social · 09/08/2025
Wow - really interesting trial for treating people with advanced head and neck cancer casued by #HPVcancer (like my own) - 'A cancer vaccine using mRNA technology will help the immune system recognise and kill cancer cells containing HPV proteins' #cansky 🧪 bit.ly/4m2LghH
bit.ly
NHS England » NHS to fast-track patients with head and neck cancer into cancer vaccine trial
NHS England » NHS to fast-track patients with head and neck cancer into cancer vaccine trial
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Josh Ahmed @geomorphicjosh.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
A great few days in #LymeRegis collecting sediment samples to assess the impact and risk posed by an eroding coastal landfill - 80+ samples retrieved and excited to see what they tell us once we get them in the lab! #RACC @profkatespencer.bsky.social @sgrieve.bsky.social @qmul.bsky.social
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
What a great few days. Smiles all round, ALL the weather, lots of sampling and all on film! @geomorphicjosh.bsky.social @sgrieve.bsky.social
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Wow. What a busy few days and we experienced ALL the weather 🌦️ ☀️ ☔️
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Alistair Boxall @alistairboxall.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
An excellent piece out today by @phoebeweston.bsky.social at the Guardian on our NERC ECOMIX project which is exploring chemical pollution in Yorkshire's rivers. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Pesticides, antibiotics, animal medicines: the chemical cocktail seeping into our rivers
The list of everyday pollutants is a long one, and they could be as damaging to our water ecosystems as sewage spills
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Steve Brace @stevebracegeog.bsky.social · 01/06/2025
It's #NationalFestivalOfFieldwork in June & have a read of Fiona Sheriff's blog for @geographicalassoc.bsky.social "Fieldwork is such an important part of the geography curriculum for all age groups and we need to ensure it stays firmly on the map." ga-blog.org/2025/05/30/g...
ga-blog.org
Get outside! Take part in the National Festival of Fieldwork - The GA Blog
Fiona Sheriff introduces the National Festival of Fieldwork and encourages everyone to take part with their students this June!
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 20/05/2025
The inter-linked risks of climate change and our waste legacy will be felt along our eroding coastlines. Nice interview of @andyrussell.bsky.social at @egu.eu. www.newscientist.com/article/2480... @newscientist.com. Details of our @qmul.ac.uk @ukri.org project at www.ukcoastalandfillresilience.org
newscientist.com
Toxic waste is spilling onto beaches as rising seas erode landfills
Waste from old landfill sites is spilling onto beaches as rising seas erode coastlines - and some of it is toxic
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 17/05/2025
Yet more reasons to watch #eurovision 😃 #geographyteacher
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
Looks like a great few days fieldwork
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 02/05/2025
Great day out filming with Pete Middleton from Feefiefoe. Cryptic clue - we saw a LOT of old tights. Watch this space…. For more details of his great work see www.feefiefoe.co.uk/about. @qmul.ac.uk
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DrRayMarine @drraymarine.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
If you're interested in marine ecosystems, the Seascape Symposium at ZSL is the place to be on the 4-5th June. I'll be in London talking about the Sussex Kelp Restoration Project www.zsl.org/seascape-sym...
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DrRayMarine @drraymarine.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
Here's the 50 day free link of our recent paper on Land use impacts on mangrove bird diversity and abundance kwnsfk27.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F...
kwnsfk27.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
And there are still unanswered questions regarding the impacts on human health. theconversation.com/as-floodwate...
theconversation.com
As floodwaters rise, toxic contaminants released from old landfills pose more of a hazard to nature and to us
As floods get more severe and more frequent as a result of climate change, the risk of toxic pollutants being released from old landfills rises.
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
Great job. Hope it went well!
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
We have 1000s #historiclandfill at risk from surface, groundwater and coastal flooding. Further analysis here doi.org/10.1002/wat2...
doi.org
Potential pollution risks of historic landfills in England: Further analysis of climate change impacts
In England, 46% of (groundwater) Source Protection Zone 3—total catchment zones contain historic landfills where modern regulations to protect drinking water supplies would not permit their construct...
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 01/05/2025
Further analysis of the risk here doi.org/10.1002/wat2...
doi.org
Potential pollution risks of historic landfills in England: Further analysis of climate change impacts
In England, 46% of (groundwater) Source Protection Zone 3—total catchment zones contain historic landfills where modern regulations to protect drinking water supplies would not permit their construct...
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