BP Oil Spill
Lessons from the Past
The recent major oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, from BP’s Deepwater Horizon, has brought the use and effectiveness of bioremediation back into the news. Recruiting bacteria and other microbes to break down synthetic waste is an immensely appealing idea. Putting microorganisms to work in this manner is the crux of bioremediation (Alcamo, Weeks, 2008). The work to clean up the Horizon spill actually started in the 1800’s when night-soil men would go from house to house and collects sewage; the sewage would then be taken to fields, spread out, and broken down by bacteria. This was the beginning of bioremediation. In the case of oil spills though, modern handling and removal made huge strides with lessons learned from …show more content…
In the field trials, four small areas were used to find the effectiveness of seeding. These field trials failed to demonstrate enhanced oil biodegradation by these products. There were no significant differences between the four areas during a 27 day trial period; the oil was already highly degraded by the time these field trials were conducted.
Additionally, the EPA carried out a large-scale project, applying different fertilizers to the contaminated shorelines. Its objective was to demonstrate the enhancement of biodegradation through the addition of nitrogen and phosphorus in the form of three different types of fertilizers: Inipol, Customblen, and Oleophilic. Several monitoring programs measured the effectiveness of these fertilizers in reducing oil contamination and evaluated potential environmental impacts. The most controversial aspect of bioremediation applications in Prince William Sound centered on the butoxy-ethanol component in Inipol and its toxicity to wildlife and cleanup workers. This was addressed by following worker safety guidelines during application of Inipol, and by using wildlife deterrents during the first 24 hours, when toxicity would have been at the highest (Hoff, …show more content…
Tests demonstrated that fertilizer application sustained higher numbers of oil-degrading microorganisms in oiled shorelines and that rates of biodegradation were enhanced, as evidenced by the chemical changes detected in recovered oil from treated and untreated reference sites. As a result of the EPA-Exxon and joint monitoring projects, bioremediation of oil contaminated beaches was shown to be a safe clean-up technology. The addition of fertilizers caused no acute toxicity to sensitive marine test species, and did not cause the release of un-degraded oil residues from the beaches (EPA,
The recent major oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, from BP’s Deepwater Horizon, has brought the use and effectiveness of bioremediation back into the news. Recruiting bacteria and other microbes to break down synthetic waste is an immensely appealing idea. Putting microorganisms to work in this manner is the crux of bioremediation (Alcamo, Weeks, 2008). The work to clean up the Horizon spill actually started in the 1800’s when night-soil men would go from house to house and collects sewage; the sewage would then be taken to fields, spread out, and broken down by bacteria. This was the beginning of bioremediation. In the case of oil spills though, modern handling and removal made huge strides with lessons learned from …show more content…
In the field trials, four small areas were used to find the effectiveness of seeding. These field trials failed to demonstrate enhanced oil biodegradation by these products. There were no significant differences between the four areas during a 27 day trial period; the oil was already highly degraded by the time these field trials were conducted.
Additionally, the EPA carried out a large-scale project, applying different fertilizers to the contaminated shorelines. Its objective was to demonstrate the enhancement of biodegradation through the addition of nitrogen and phosphorus in the form of three different types of fertilizers: Inipol, Customblen, and Oleophilic. Several monitoring programs measured the effectiveness of these fertilizers in reducing oil contamination and evaluated potential environmental impacts. The most controversial aspect of bioremediation applications in Prince William Sound centered on the butoxy-ethanol component in Inipol and its toxicity to wildlife and cleanup workers. This was addressed by following worker safety guidelines during application of Inipol, and by using wildlife deterrents during the first 24 hours, when toxicity would have been at the highest (Hoff, …show more content…
Tests demonstrated that fertilizer application sustained higher numbers of oil-degrading microorganisms in oiled shorelines and that rates of biodegradation were enhanced, as evidenced by the chemical changes detected in recovered oil from treated and untreated reference sites. As a result of the EPA-Exxon and joint monitoring projects, bioremediation of oil contaminated beaches was shown to be a safe clean-up technology. The addition of fertilizers caused no acute toxicity to sensitive marine test species, and did not cause the release of un-degraded oil residues from the beaches (EPA,