Decades ago, the Los Angeles coast was a hidden dumping ground for thousands of barrels of acid sludge laced with the toxic pesticide DDT.

The ocean buried the evidence for generations. No one could see it — until now. https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-coast-ddt-dumping-ground/">https://www.latimes.com/projects/...

DDT wasn’t banned until 1972.

Shipping logs show that every month in the years after World War II, thousands of barrels of toxic waste were dumped near Santa Catalina Island.

As many as half a million of these barrels could still be underwater right now.

Tales of this buried secret haunted scientists for years: a largely unknown chapter in the most infamous case of environmental destruction off the L.A. coast.

Deep-sea robots have allowed researchers today to take photos and samples of the seafloor. https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-coast-ddt-dumping-ground/">https://www.latimes.com/projects/...

The nation’s largest DDT maker was based in L.A. For years, it dumped its waste into the sea.

Common wisdom at the time was that the ocean would dilute even the most dangerous poisons.

But DDT is so stable it can take generations to break down. https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-coast-ddt-dumping-ground/">https://www.latimes.com/projects/...