About CAP.LA
In the wake of the Eaton and Palisades Fires, disaster recovery experts from multiple universities have come together to expedite and empower household and business recovery decisions. Their efforts, as part of a data-informed civic action, will enable household members and business owners to be proactive recovery partners.
CAP.LA (Community Action Project LA) is funded by the R&S Kayne Foundation and includes researchers from Loyola Marymount University, UCLA, and Purdue University.
Sanjay Mohanty piloting the process
March 1, 2025 - This weekend UCLA Professor and CAP.LA Researcher Sanjay Mohanty went to the Pacific Palisades, near Rustic Canyon, to test out some of the new equipment he and his team will be using for soil sampling. In this picture, he is using a handheld XRF (X-Ray Fluorescence) Spectrometer to do the readings. This particular test occurred in an area where the Phase 2 removal of six inches of soil has not been removed but will be soon. Even though it was only a trial run, he shared the results with the homeowner and talked through what removing the top six inches would be able to do to lower the concentration of copper he found from the testing.
Newest member of CAP.LA
February 28, 2025 - Check out the newest addition to CAP.LA. No, it's not a person, it's a tool. It's the Vanta Handheld XRF Analyzer. This is just one of the tools UCLA Professor and CAP.LA Researcher Sanjay Mohanty will use for his sampling and analysis. We are testing for the following metals: Lead, chromium, vanadium, cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, selenium, cadmium, and mercury, and for the following Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS): PFOA, PFOS, PFBA, PFSA, PFHxS, and PFNA. We will measure metals using Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) after digesting the soil to leach all metals. Additionally, we will use high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) to measure PFAS.
And we're off...
February 18, 2025 - All systems go. The website for CAP.LA (Community Action Project - Los Angeles) is official. The research team comprised of researchers from UCLA, Purdue University, and Loyola Marymount University is excited to be working alongside the R&S Kayne Foundation for this meaningful and impactful research. We are all enthusiastic to begin soil sampling/testing and the survey in the weeks to come. Sign-ups are live and the enrollments are coming in as of our launch earlier today.
Funding and Support
If you or your organization are interested in joining the R&S Kayne Foundation in supporting CAP.LA, we invite you to visit our giving page (and enter CAP.LA under the "Additional Gift Instructions") or contact Brianne Gilbert at 310-338-4565 or brianne.gilbert@lmu.edu.
As the recovery continues, additional funding will allow us to ensure we are able to nimbly and effectively help as many people as possible through additional research, data visualization, and support for data-informed civic engagement.