Peter Ross

Address
Executive Director
Coastal Ocean Research Institute
Vancouver Aquarium
845 Avison Way
Vancouver, BC

Email: peter.ross@ocean.org

Research area(s):

  • Marine conservation
  • Marine mammals
  • Pacific salmon
  • Pollutants

Area of Expertise:

Dr. Peter S. Ross is the Vice-President of Research at Ocean Wise, and Executive Director of the Coastal Ocean Research Institute (CORI). He oversees 10 research programs at Ocean Wise, with a focus on conservation science. He is an international authority in the area of ocean pollution, having published over 150 scientific articles, with a focus on the source, transport, fate and effects of priority pollutants. He launched the Ocean Pollution Research Program at Ocean Wise in 2014, with a strong focus on microplastic pollution in the world’s oceans. He and his team are leading a solution-oriented microfibre research partnership aimed at understanding the sources of microfibres in aquatic environments, in collaboration with multiple partners.

Before his position at Ocean Wise, Dr. Ross was a Research Scientist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada in Sidney, BC for over 15 years. While there some of his work included:

  • Research into source, transport, fate and effects of environmental contaminants.
  • Management of lab and field research.
  • Study of killer whales, beluga whales, harbour seals, sea otters, ringed seals, Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins, aquatic food webs, salmon, fish.
  • Environmental assessment of PCBs, PBDEs, dioxins, furans, organochlorine pesticides, mercury.
  • Provision of scientific expertise on conservation, habitat protection, enforcement, fisheries impacts, chemical regulations, source control, environmental impact assessments, project and permit reviews

Select Presentation(s) / Publication(s):

Neauport, Megane; Noel, Marie; Etemadifar, Anahita; and Ross, Peter, “Microplastics contamination in blue mussels (Mytilus edulis (L.)) and marine sediments along the coast of British Columbia, Canada” (2018). Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference. 413. https://cedar.wwu.edu/ssec/2018ssec/allsessions/413

Ross, Peter; Vassilenko, Katerina; Watkins, Mathew; Neauport, Megane; Noel, Marie, “Microplastics in the NE Pacific: the emergence of an unprecedented pollutant class” (2018). Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference. 377. https://cedar.wwu.edu/ssec/2018ssec/allsessions/377/

Jarvella Rosenberger, Adrianne; MacDuffee, Misty; Rosenberger, Andrew; Ross, Peter; “Oil spills and marine mammals in British Columbia, Canada: development and application of a risk-based conceptual framework” (2018). Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference. 301. https://cedar.wwu.edu/ssec/2018ssec/allsessions/301//

A Gies, Esther & L LeNoble, Jessica & Noel, Marie & Etemadifar, Anahita & Bishay, Farida & R Hall, Eric & Ross, Peter. (2018). Retention of microplastics in a major secondary wastewater treatment plant in Vancouver, Canada. Marine pollution bulletin. 133. 553-561. 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.06.006.

Mark Hipfner, J & Galbraith, Moira & Tucker, Strahan & R Studholme, Katharine & Domalik, Alice & Pearson, Scott & Good, Thomas & Ross, Peter & Hodum, Peter. (2018). Two forage fishes as potential conduits for the vertical transfer of microfibres in Northeastern Pacific Ocean food webs. Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987). 239. 215-222. 10.1016/j.envpol.2018.04.009.

Morales-Caselles, Carmen & Desforges, jean-pierre & Dangerfield, Neil & Ross, Peter. (2017). A Risk-Based Characterization of Sediment Contamination by Legacy and Emergent Contaminants of Concern in Coastal British Columbia, Canada. Archives of environmental contamination and toxicology. 73. 10.1007/s00244-017-0403-z.

Alava, Juan José & Cheung, William & Day, Andrew & Sumaila, Rashid & Ross, Peter. (2017). Ocean pollution indicators for the Strait of Georgia.

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