Frequent and severe wildfires have led to increased application of fire suppressants in the Western United States. Increased heavy metal content in soils and surface waters at the wildland-urban interface has been observed after wildfires but has primarily been attributed to ash deposition or anthropogenic impact from nearby urban areas. In this study, metal concentrations in several fire suppression products (some approved by the U.S. Forest Service, and some marketed for consumer use) were quantified to evaluate whether these products could contribute to increased metal concentrations observed in the environment post-fire. Long-term fire retardants contained concentrations of toxic metals (V, Cr, Mn, Cu, As, Cd, Sb, Ba, Tl, and Pb) many times greater than drinking water regulatory limits, and greater than some aquatic toxicity thresholds when released into the environment. Based on these concentrations and retardant application records, we estimate fire retardant application in the U.S. contributed approximately 380,000 kilograms of toxic metals to the environment between 2009 and 2021. We also estimate that, in the case of the 2009 Station Fire near Los Angeles, the mass of cadmium contributed by fire suppression was sufficient to account for documented cadmium export during post-fire storms. In addition to technical findings, this seminar will narrate our accidental path into wildfire research, and interactions with the press and general public after our results were published.