Bioremediation

            Using bioremediation to clean up oil spills means using bacteria or other microscopic organisms to break down the hydrocarbons that make up the oil. By doing this, the spill is broken down into elements such as water, carbon dioxide, and other material that is not harmful to the environment.

            Bioremediation is the artificial enhancement of biodegradation. The environment naturally breaks down most materials (including oil) over time. Bioremediation introduces organisms and nutrients that help to speed up this process. Most environments possess microbes that are able to break down hydrocarbons such as oil, and disaster areas possess higher numbers of these microbes. Scientists then add even more of these organisms if needed and the nutrients they require for the processes to the affected area. Many of these useful organisms also require oxygen to help carry out the break down process. In many cases the atmosphere is sufficient, but sometimes the water and spill have to be aerated to provide more oxygen for the microbes. Studies have shown that using bioremediation to clean up oil spills can cut the cleanup time by as much as half.

            One advantage to using bioremediation rather than traditional clean up methods is that bioremediation uses natural processes to actually break down the pollutant. This means there is minimal negative environmental impact as a result of bioremediation, and the pollutant is actually destroyed, rather than simply moved somewhere else. Clean up is therefore more effective in the long-term environmental effects than traditional methods. Bioremediation is also usually cheaper and more cost-effective than traditional methods due to its non-intensive approach. It also involves less human labor, and is safer to use.

            One of the disadvantages of bioremediation in relation to oil spills is that there is no guarantee of success. Each oil spill has unique characteristics, and require that the methods be altered to be most efficient. In some cases this can be very difficult. Bioremediation is also usually not as fast as traditional methods, so in many cases a combination of the two processes should be used to be most efficient. Studies have also shown that bioremediation may not be very effective in the open sea, while more effective along the coast.

References

Erguvanli, L. E. Imge. “Bioremediation of Marine Oil Spills.” Microbiology and Bacteriology. 13 April 2008.

<http://www.bact.wisc.edu/Microtextbook/index.php?name=Sections&req=viewarticle&artid=178&page=1>

Gordon, Ray. “Bioremediation and its Application to Exxon Valdez Oil Spill in Alaska.” Ray’s Environmental Science Website. 1994. 13 April 2008.

<http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Lab/2094/bioremed.html>.

Lee, Kenneth; McDonagh, Madeleine; Swannell, Richard. “Field Evaluations of Marine Oil Spill Bioremediation.” Microbiological Reviews. June 1996. American Society for Microbiology. 13 April 2008.

<http://mmbr.asm.org/cgi/reprint/60/2/342.pdf>.

Senn Ali. “Bioremediation of Oil Spills.” Microbiology and Bacteriology. 4 August 1999. 13 April 2008.

<http://www.bact.wisc.edu/Microtextbook/index.php?name=Sections&req=viewarticle&artid=160&page=1>.

“Bioremediation.” Wikipedia. 4 April 2008. 13 April 2008.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioremediation>.        

“Soil Reclamation, Oil Spill Cleanup, Oil Slick Dispersants, Hydrocarbon Bioremediation.” Ecochem. Ecochem. 13 April 2008.

<http://www.ecochem.com/t_cbpa2.html>.