Skip to content

Philippines Today

home of the Global Filipino

Menu
  • News Stories
  • Regional News
  • Business & Economy
  • Science & Technology
  • International
Menu

Marine Oil Spill Bioremediation

Posted on August 26, 2006

With the recent sinking of an oil tanker off the coast of Guimaras, an environmental disaster looms as 200,000 to 300,000 liters of bunker fuel have already found their way into more than 300 km of coastline, as of this writing. The usual response to this emergency is the rapid containment of the oil slick, and if possible, the salvaging of the doomed tanker from more than 3,000 feet of water. It is believed that the tanker still holds 1.8 million liters of fuel, which, if left to surface, will cause the nation’s worst oil spill in history.

While containment and recovery efforts are underway, it is undeniable that much oil has already damaged pristine environments such as mangrove forests and coral reefs. Therein lies part of the problem. These pristine environments are most probably devoid of so-called oil-degrading bacteria which have the potential to biodegrade this oil.

About 10 years ago, I conducted my MS thesis on bioremediation and hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria from the Manila Bay when I was a graduate student of the Institute of Biology in UP Diliman. I isolated, characterized, identified and determined the bioremediation potential of a number of isolates from the North Harbor using various chromatography techniques. Among the results that I found was that waters off Manila Bay contain as much as 150,000 oil-degrading bacteria per 100 ml of seawater; this is roughly 10% of the total bacterial population. In pristine environments such as those currently inundated by oil, they comprise less than 0.1%.

Results of my experiments back then have shown that when these bacteria act in consortium under optimum laboratory conditions, as much as 50% of the saturate fraction of heavy oil can be degraded in two weeks. The question then is how do we replicate these optimum conditions in the lab in an oil spill environment.

There are a number of requirements necessary for an effective bioremediation response. First is temperature, the optimum of which is between 20-30 oC. Fortunately, the country’s temperature hovers within this range. Next is oxygen. The theoretical oxygen demand is 3.5 g of oil oxidized per g of oxygen. Anaerobic hydrocarbon degradation occurs at negligible rates. Thus, simply tilling and loosening the oil-contaminated sand would considerably help. Another is nutrients. Oil and fuel are essentially carbon-rich, but oil-degrading bacteria cannot survive and proliferate on carbon alone. They also need nitrogen and phosphates, in the same way that we need proteins to grow. Thus, the addition of slow-release fertilizers to the contaminated site is necessary. Ensure, however, that these fertilizers also do not pollute the environment. One study has shown that the optimal concentrations for N and P are 11 and 2 mg, respectively, for the biodegradation of 1 g of oil.

The most important star in this bioremediation show is the hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria, which, unfortunately, is most probably limited in the oil-contaminated sites of Guimaras. It would take months before their numbers increase substantially in response to the overwhelming oil. One way to expedite their impact is introduce them to the oil spill sites. But from where shall we get them then?

The Manila Bay is undoubtedly an environment that has been constantly oil-polluted for decades, and its waters harbor the best, hardiest and most powerful oil-degrading bacteria. If seawater from this and other oil-contaminated sites is introduced to the inundated coasts of Guimaras, we would essentially be inoculating the area with these natural degraders and benefit from their natural propensities. When the oil is gone, most of these bacteria also die out.

Bioremediation has been tested and used during the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska and results showed that treated beaches became essentially oil-free within two weeks. Various bioremediation technologies are currently available as inexpensive alternatives to the prohibitively expensive clean up efforts.

Nature can heal itself from the damage caused by man. Now, more than ever, we need nature’s help in cleaning up the coastlines of Guimaras. *

The author has been following developments in the oil spill disaster not only because it was his former research but essentially because he is from Negros Occidental (Bacolod City), which is currently threatened by the oil spill. His MS thesis is available at the College of Science library in UP Diliman or at the National Library. He is now based at the University of Tsukuba, Japan, as a research scientist working on various bioprospecting projects. Email him at talorete(at)agbi(dot)tsukuba(dot)ac(dot)jp.

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • More
  • Tumblr
  • Reddit

Related

News Categories

  • Announcement (34)
  • Business & Economy (1,567)
  • Comment and Opinion (74)
    • Random Thoughts (18)
  • Current Issues (425)
    • Charter Change (1)
    • Election (228)
    • Population (6)
  • International (389)
  • Life In Japan (66)
    • Everything Japan (41)
  • Literary (34)
  • Miscellaneous (610)
  • News Stories (5,312)
  • OFW Corner (297)
  • Others (75)
  • People (408)
  • Press Releases (163)
  • Regional News (3,362)
  • Science and Technology (502)
  • Sports & Entertainment (287)

Latest News

  • BSP keeps policy rates anew December 17, 2015
  • NEDA cuts PHL additional rice import for 2016 by 25% December 17, 2015
  • DA cites serious implications of banning genetically modified products December 17, 2015
  • BBL is not yet dead – Drilon December 17, 2015
  • Comelec recognizes Duterte’s CoC for president December 17, 2015
  • NEDA chief sees 2015 growth at 6% despite typhoons December 17, 2015
  • House of Representatives ratifies bicam report on P3.002-T national budget for 2016 December 17, 2015
  • Cebu-based developer invests PHP430M to build 709 townhouse units in north Cebu town December 17, 2015
  • City gov’t eyes P75-M income from economic enterprise December 17, 2015
  • Baguio City LGU presents traffic plan for holiday season December 17, 2015

Archives

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Science and Technology

  • DOST-ICTO targets 500,000 web-based workers from countryside by 2016
  • (Feature) STARBOOKS: A ‘makeover’ for librarians
  • Science, research reduce ‘cocolisap’ hotspot areas in PHL
  • Montejo to further improve PAGASA and empower scientists
  • 1st PPP in biomedical research produces knee replacement system fit for Asians

Press Releases

  • Microsoft to buy Nokia’s mobile devices business for 5.44-B euros
  • New World Bank climate change report should spur SEA and world leaders into action: Greenpeace
  • Save the Philippine Seas before it’s too late — Greenpeace
  • Palanca Awards’ last call for entries
  • Philippines joins the global call for Arctic protection

Comment and Opinion

  • Remembering the dead is a celebration of life
  • Killer earthquake unlikely to hit Panay Island in near future – analyst
  • It’s not just more fun to invest in the Philippines, it is also profitable, says President Aquino
  • How does one differentiate a tamaraw from a carabao?
  • Fun is not just about the place, it is also about the people, says DOT chief

OFW Corner

  • Ebola infection risk low in Croatia
  • Death toll rises to 41, over 100 still missing in landslide in India
  • Asbestos use in construction a labor hazard
  • 500,000 OFWs to benefit POEA on-line transactions — Baldoz
  • 25 distressed OFWs return home from Riyadh
©2025 Philippines Today | Design: Newspaperly WordPress Theme