Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Mark Patrick Taylor is a Professor of Environmental Science and Human Health at Macquarie University, Sydney, specialising in environmental contamination and the risks it can pose.
His research program investigates environmental contamination in aerosols, dusts, sediments, soil and water and risks to human health. His work has focused on mining and smelting emissions and depositions, as well as contamination in urban environments. In recent years he has examined lead and other contaminants in bees, sparrows, lichens and wildfire ash. His most recent paper examines atmospheric trace metal emissions from wildfires. His work has also encompassed ‘human environments’ and has included analysis of blood lead levels in children, lead in wine, honey, residential veggie patches, household dusts, drinking water and the effect of early life lead exposure on aggressive crime rates.
His group’s work includes Australia’s only community VegeSafe program, which provides free soil metal analysis and advice to household gardeners across the nation. More recently, he started a new global citizen science initiative ‘DustSafe’ to examine contaminants in household dust.
As a former Commissioner of the NSW Land and Environment Court, expert advisor to a range of government, industry, NGO and community organisations in regard to environmental pollution and human heath, Professor Taylor has contributed significantly to Australia’s environmental protection, management and remediation.
He has completed several commissions for government in recent years: (i) A review of the NSW EPA’s management of contaminated sites for the NSW Minister for the Environment, which focussed on perfluorinated (PFAS) chemical exposure and its management; (ii) A review of lead in plumbing fittings and materials for the Australian Building Codes Board; (iii) A state of the science review for NSW EPA’s Broken Hill Environmental Lead Program in regard to childhood lead exposures.
In addition, he is a science advisor to the following: the Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation who represent the Mirrar people that are impacted by uranium mining in Kakadu, Northern Territory; the Metropolitan Fire Brigade (Melbourne), which includes his CI role in a clinical intervention trial for PFAS removal; and the Broken Hill Environmental Lead Program, which is addressing childhood lead exposures from mining operations.
His work has received extensive and career defining media coverage, including in leading outlets such as ABC’s 730 Report, Four Corners, Catalyst, Background Briefing and on the front pages of the SMH and The Age.
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Network
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Citizen insights to the composition and risks of household dust
Taylor, M., Strezov, V., Gillings, M. & Handley, H.
20/06/17 → …
Project: Research
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Macquarie University Energy and Environmental Contaminants Research Centre
Taylor, M., Gore, D., Strezov, V., Nelson, P., Edwards, G., Davies, P., Kennedy, M., Loehr, S., Handley, H., George, S., Jiang, Y. & Hose, G.
1/01/16 → …
Project: Research
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The sparrows in the mining towns: a century of adaptation to metal contamination
Griffith, S., Taylor, M. & Swaddle, J.
1/06/20 → 30/05/23
Project: Research
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Formation and distribution of dioxins in agglomerated products and emitted dust during iron ore sintering
Zhou, X., Strezov, V., Evans, T., Salian, K. & Taylor, M. P., Jun 2023, In: Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering. 11, 3, p. 1-8 8 p., 109665.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Impact of salinity and temperature on removal of PFAS species from water by aeration in the absence of additional surfactants: a novel application of green chemistry using adsorptive bubble fractionation
Morrison, A. L., Strezov, V., Niven, R. K., Taylor, M. P., Wilson, S. P., Wang, J., Burns, D. J. & Murphy, P. J. C., 5 Apr 2023, In: Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research. 62, 13, p. 5635–5645 11 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile4 Downloads (Pure) -
Kinetic model of PFAS removal by semi-batch foam fractionation and validation by experimental data for K-PFOS
Wang, J., Niven, R. K., Morrison, A., Wilson, S. P., Strezov, V. & Taylor, M. P., 20 Mar 2023, In: Science of the Total Environment. 865, p. 1-6 6 p., 161145.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Effect of plasma and blood donations on levels of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in firefighters in Australia: a randomized clinical trial
Gasiorowski, R., Forbes, M. K., Silver, G., Krastev, Y., Hamdorf, B., Lewis, B., Tisbury, M., Cole-Sinclair, M., Lanphear, B. P., Klein, R. A., Holmes, N. & Taylor, M. P., 8 Apr 2022, In: JAMA Network Open. 5, 4, p. 1-13 13 p., e226257.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile3 Citations (Scopus)35 Downloads (Pure) -
Influence of iron ore properties on dioxin emissions during iron ore sintering
Zhou, X., Strezov, V., Evans, T., Salian, K. & Taylor, M. P., 6 Dec 2022, In: Scientific Reports. 12, p. 1-9 9 p., 21080.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile3 Downloads (Pure)
Prizes
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Macquarie University Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Programs that Enhance Learning
Taylor, Mark (Team leader) & Gore, Damian (Recipient), 2011
Prize: Teaching award
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The Lingering Legacy of Lead in Australian Cities and Environments
Taylor, Mark (Recipient), 2011
Prize