bioremediation. hydraulic fracturing why do we even need it? we can’t seem to stop polluting...
TRANSCRIPT
Bioremediation
Hydraulic Fracturing
Why do we even need it?
• We can’t seem to stop polluting– Inorganics
• Uranium, technetium, sulfur, sulfuric acid
– Explosives• RDX, TNT
– Polyaromatic hydrocarbons• creosote
– Chlorinated hydrocarbons• Trichloroethylene, PCBs,
pentachlorophenol– Petroleum hydrocarbons
• Gas, gas additives (MTBE), diesel
• From mid-1980’s up to 90’s numerous attempts were made to design GMO for environmental release for pollutants and heavy metals (USGS). – Failures to program: bacteria doesn’t
behave in a predictable fashion from the lab.
What is bioremediation?
The use of bacteria and fungi and plants to break down or degrade toxic
chemical compounds that have accumulated in the environment
What are environmental contaminants?
• Pollutants– naturally-occurring compounds
in the environment that are present in unnaturally high concentrations.
– Examples:• crude oil
• refined oil
• phosphates
• heavy metals
• Xenobiotics– chemically synthesized
compounds that have never occurred in nature.
– Examples:• pesticides
• herbicides
• plastics
Groundwater contamination
• Groundwater constitutes 96% of available freshwater in U.S.
• 95% of potable water in rural areas of U.S. comes from groundwater
• In 2014, EPA confirmed that 42 states had various amounts of 260 different pesticides in their groundwater
• Most Polluted States: California, Wisconsin, Arizona, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, New York, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Illinois
Groundwater contamination
• Cost of cleanup is in the $ trillions
• Issues that are still hotly debated– How clean is clean?
What Makes Bioremediation a Promising Approach?
• permanence– contaminant is degraded
• potentially low cost– 60-90% less than other technologies
Economics of in-situ vs. ex-situ remediation of contaminated soils
• Cost of treating contaminated soil in place $80-$100 per ton
• Cost of excavating and trucking contaminated soil off for incineration is $400 per ton.
• Over 90% of the chemical substances classified as hazardous today can be biodegraded.
Contaminants Potentially Amenable to Bioremediation________________________________________________________________________________________
Readilydegradable_____________
Somewhatdegradable_____________
Difficult todegrade_____________
Generallyrecalcitrant_____________
fuel oils, gasoline creosote, coaltars
chlorinatedsolvents (TCE)
dioxins
ketones andalcohols
pentachloro-phenol (PCP)
some pesticidesand herbicides
polychlorinatedbiphenyls (PCB)
monocyclicaromatics
bicyclic aromatics(naphthalene)
What challenges exist for bioremediation of pollutants and xenobiotics?
• Pollutants– may exist at high, toxic
concentrations– degradation may
depend on another nutrient that is in limiting supply
• Xenobiotics– microbes may not yet
have evolved biochemical pathways to degrade compounds
– may require a consortium of microbial populations
Phytoremediation
• Drawbacks– Only surface soil (root zone) can be treated– Cleanup takes several years
Environmental Consequences of Large Oil Spills
Center rectangular plot (arrow) was treated with inorganic nutrients to stimulate bioremediation
Petroleum Biodegradation• Diverse bacteria, fungi, and some
cyanobacteria and green algae can oxidize petroleum products aerobically
• Oil-oxidizing activity is best if temperature and inorganic nutrient concentrations are optimal
• Hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria attach to oil droplets and decompose the oil and dispense the slick