Bioremediation of Metals

TITLE: BIOREMEDIATION OF METALS

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BREAK 1 MUSIC:(ARTIST)Joe Stark: (SONG) Chemical Bond

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MAIN BODY:

TODAY WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BIOREMEDIATION. WE WILL COVER MANY OF THE MICROBES THAT ARE USED TO BIOREMEDIATE METALS.

BIOREMEDIATION INVOLVES REMOVING OR NEUTRALIZING HEAVY METALS FROM SOIL, WATER, OR OTHER POLLUTED ENVIRONMENTS BY EMPLOYING LIVING ORGANISMS, INCLUDING BACTERIA, FUNGI, AND PLANTS.

METALS, SUCH AS ARSENIC, CADMIUM, CHROMIUM,  LEAD, AND MERCURY, ARE PERSISTENT POLLUTANTS THAT, IN HIGH QUANTITIES, POSE SERIOUS DANGERS TO ECOSYSTEMS AND PUBLIC HEALTH. THESE METALS MAY ENTER THE ENVIRONMENT DUE TO AGRICULTURE, INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES, INAPPROPRIATE WASTE MANAGEMENT, LANDFILLS, MINING OPERATIONS, OR UNINTENTIONAL SPILLS.

There are a few different methods

PHYTOEXTRACTION, which is USING PLANTS TO PULL THE METALS FROM SOIL, AND BIOLEACHING, which  IS USING MICROBES TO EXTRACT METALS FROM ORES OR WASTE BY USING MICROORGANISMS TO OXIDIZE THE METALS, PRODUCING SOLUBLE COMPOUNDS.

BENEFITS

THERE ARE THREE MAJOR BENEFITS OF BIOREMEDIATION. 

FIRST,  IT USES THE LIVING THINGS NATURALLY AND SUSTAINABLY, WHICH LESSENS THE NEED FOR HARSH CHEMICALS AND ENERGY-INTENSIVE PROCESSES to POSITIVELY IMPACT THE ENVIRONMENT.

SECOND, BIOREMEDIATION CAN BE CARRIED OUT IN-SITU, meaning ON-SITE, ELIMINATING THE NEED FOR EXCAVATION AND TRANSPORTING VAST AMOUNTS OF POLLUTED MATERIAL. The term ex-situ means off-site.

AND THIRD, UTILIZING NATURALLY-OCCURRING ORGANISMS ALLOWS CLEANUP IN LOCATIONS WITH LIMITED FINANCIAL RESOURCES SINCE IT ELIMINATES THE NEED FOR COSTLY INFRASTRUCTURE AND EQUIPMENT and allows for remote applications.

BREAK. 

OK, WE’RE BACK AND TALKING ABOUT THE BIOREMEDIATION OF METALS.

PHYTOREMEDIATION INVOLVES PLANTS THAT CAN PULL METALS FROM THE SOIL. HERE ARE SOME OF THE MOST COMMON PLANTS: 

INDIAN MUSTARD CAN COLLECT METALS, INCLUDING CADMIUM, ZINC, LEAD, AND NICKEL

SUNFLOWERS COLLECT METALS FROM CONTAMINATED SOILS, PARTICULARLY LEAD, WITH THEIR EXTENSIVE ROOTS.

WILLOWS HAVE RAPID DEVELOPMENT AND DEEP ROOT SYSTEMS. THEY HAVE THE CAPACITY TO GATHER METALS LIKE CADMIUM, ZINC, AND NICKEL.

POPLAR TREES HAVE THE CAPACITY TO REMOVE VARIOUS POLLUTANTS, INCLUDING METALS. THEY CAN REMEDIATE METALS LIKE CADMIUM, COPPER, AND ZINC.

THERE ARE MANY MORE TYPES OF PLANTS USED IN PHYTOREMEDIATION. PHYTOREMEDIATION OPERATIONS FREQUENTLY COMBINE PLANT SPECIES TO MAXIMIZE METAL REMOVAL AND REMEDIATION RESULTS. THEY BENEFIT FROM COMBINING PLANTS WITH ORGANIC MATTER (COMPOSTS, HUMATES, ETC.) AND MICROBES. 

LET'S NOW LOOK AT USING MICROBES IN BIOREMEDIATION.

MICROBES USED IN BIOREMEDIATION PROJECTS INCLUDE BACILLUS SPECIES, FUNGI, LACTOBACILLUS SPECIES, PHOTOSYNTHETIC BACTERIA, AND YEASTS. THERE ARE LONG LISTS OF MICROBES AND THE METALS THEY WILL PHYTOREMEDIATE ON THEIR OWN. HOWEVER, MUCH OF THE RESEARCH LEANS TOWARD MIXED CULTURES, KNOWN AS CONSORTIA.  

THERE ARE SEVERAL APPROACHES, OR TECHNIQUES, IN HOW THIS IS DONE. 

BIOAUGMENTATION ENTAILS ADDING PARTICULAR BACTERIAL CONSORTIA OR STRAINS WITH PARTICULAR METABOLIC PROPERTIES TO THE CONTAMINATED SITE.

BIOSTIMULATION OF THE MICROBIAL COMMUNITY PRESENT AT THE SITE BY ADDING FOOD TO STIMULATE MICROBIAL GROWTH IN THE AREA TO BE REMEDIATED.

GENETIC ENGINEERING IS WHERE THE TARGETED MICROBES CAN BE GIVEN GENES ENCODING PARTICULAR ENZYMES OR PATHWAYS INVOLVED IN POLLUTANT DEGRADATION TO ENHANCE PERFORMANCE.

COMBINING TECHNIQUES FOR OPTIMUM RESULTS.

AS WITH EVERYTHING, MORE RESEARCH IS NEEDED AND IS ONGOING. HOWEVER, THE BENEFITS ARE EVIDENT.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

I’VE WANTED TO COVER THIS TOPIC FOR A WHILE. OVER THE YEARS, I HAVE HAD PEOPLE ASK ME IF IT IS POSSIBLE  TO BREAK DOWN METALS WITH MICROBES. USING MICROBES FOR THE REMEDIATION OF METALS IS REAL. IT IS ACTUALLY A COMMON METHOD OF TREATMENT. DETERMINING WHICH APPROACH IS CRUCIAL TO HAVING A SUCCESSFUL PROJECT. THERE ARE MANY BENEFITS, INCLUDING LOWER COST THAN REMOVING EVERYTHING AND THAT IT CAN BE DONE ON-SITE. THE JOBS CAN BE DONE IN REMOTE LOCATIONS AS WELL. AND THE POTENTIAL OF COMBINING TECHNIQUES SUCH AS PHYTOREMEDIATION WITH MYCROREMEDIATION AND BACTERIAL REMEDIATION BECOMES ENDLESS SOLUTIONS. FINALLY, I DIDN’T TALK TOO MUCH ABOUT IT HERE, BUT THESE PROCESSES WORK ON RADIOCATIVE MATERIALS AS WELL. SO, IF YOU’RE IN NEED OF REMEDIATING SOMETHING TOXIC, YOU MIGHT WANT TO LOOK AT BIOLOGY TO SAVE THE DAY!

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