Abstract: Enhanced Natural Bioremediation: an Affordable and Effective Technology for Petroleum Related Contamination
GEORGE, SHERI, and WILLIAM J. TAYLOR
A.C.T.
Laboratory, Inc., Mobile, AL 36606
Recent projects where sites had both soil and groundwater contamination
from historical and recent petroleum releases were remediated below regulatory
action limits using affordable and economic technology without employing
the use of expensive bioremediation systems. Enhancing natural bioremediation
by manually introducing microbes, nutrients, and oxygen donor "socks" into
the groundwater wells, kept the microbes working at optimum levels. Three
sites with varying backgrounds, geology, contamination levels, and in situ
levels of natural nutrients and oxygen were remediated. One site, had petroleum
contamination in several wells with values in thousands of parts per billion
for dissolved phase hydrocarbons over a period of 10 years. The site had
a proposed Corrective Action Plan to remediate the contamination eventually
for a cost in excess of a quarter million dollars! Using enhanced natural
bioremediation technologies, the wells were injected for a fraction of
the original cost. The site received a no further action one year after
initiating bioremediation. The other two sites were treated in a similar
manner obtaining the same outstanding results at minimal cost. Constant
fine tuning of the process now allows a much wider application of these
principles to include dry cleaning solvents and other constituents of hazardous
waste.
AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90932©1998 GCAGS/GCS-SEPM Meeting, Corpus Christi, Texas