Meet Myron Lard: First to Investigate Soil Samples in Colfax, Louisiana, and East Palestine, Ohio

Protecting Communities From Pollution

Doctoral student in chemistry Myron Lard joined LSU to help advance the science on environmentally persistent free radicals, a dangerous pollutant found in air, soil, and homes all over the world. Starting in the lab on LSU’s flagship campus, studying model clays, Lard soon found himself working alongside residents and communities to collect soil samples across the state. Then, when a Norfolk Southern freight train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed and caught fire in East Palestine, Ohio, he was first on the field to collect soil samples and use knowledge gained in Louisiana to help people there.

For the first time, Lard was able to make a new connection between environmentally persistent free radicals and cancer-causing dioxins using real-world samples.

“It was primarily the work we did together in Colfax, Louisiana, that inspired me to get involved in East Palestine,” Lard said. “I saw an opportunity to be useful. We could lend our expertise, build a research team, and quickly get information to the community.”

Since 2009, LSU’s Superfund Research Program, of which Lard is a member, has been the primary source of the emerging science on environmentally persistent free radicals, which are created through combustion and exist in everything from car exhaust to cooking fumes to wildfires.

“When I became aware of the environmental situation in which I live, my first concern was for my family. Working with the LSU Superfund Research Program, we’re finding out more about our own area, about ourselves, and getting answers to questions.”

Brenda Vallee, Colfax resident