OilClean is the ideal non-invasive treatment system for marsh and wetland ecosystems. The entire system can be implemented without additional damage to the habitat. OilClean naturally biodegrades oil and restores the ecosystem without trampling, wiping — or worse, excavation. Depending on weather and water conditions, positive results can be seen within weeks.
To demonstrate the impact of Oil Clean bioremediation treatment, we created a simulated marsh in a large aquarium. Marsh plants were soaked in crude oil for several days. The base and roots of the marsh plants are blackened with sticky oil.
Then we added several gallons of natural seawater. Much of the oil quickly dispersed into the seawater, coating the surface with thick, heavy, crude — nearly impenetrable to sunlight below.
One week later it's evident that most of surface oil is gone. The water conditions have vastly improved. Below the surface, microbes have concentrated in the roots of marsh plants. The roots are noticeably cleaner — even budding new growth. On the surface foam bubbles begin to appear, evidence that healthy biological activity is occurring.
In the weeks ahead, microbes will continue to destroy the remaining oil — transforming the microscopic particles into natural, harmless carbon dioxide and water.
Two flasks were filled with equal amounts of seawater. Then equal amounts of crude oil was added to each flask.
Our specialized eco-safe microbes and activator were added to the treatment flask (left). The control flask (right) was not altered. Both flasks were placed in an incubation unit (shaken to provide aeration). In an actual coastal or wetland habitat, aeration naturally occurs with tides, currents or with external aerators.
There is no longer an oil-like sheen in the treatment flask -- unlike control flask.
Microbes produce surfactants (similar to the chemical dispersant but natural and safe to human, animals and the environment) that dissolved some crude oil in the water. The disappearance of crude oil on the water surface results as the oil particles fuse together and cling to the glass surface.
Seven hours later, the dark ring of oil is noticably thinner in the treatment flask, as the microbes actively degrade the oil. The control flask remains the same.
As the degradation process continues, microbes are reproducing inside the flask. The speed of the degradation process depends on a number of factors such as temperature, nutrients, amount of dissolved oxygen present in the water and hydrocarbon chain length.
Five hours later, the dark ring of oil is diminishing in the treatment flask. The seawater is noticably darker due to the breakdown and dispersment of the oil in the presence of sufactants. This process is not harmful to ecosystems unlike toxic chemical dispersants.
In less than a day of incubation, very little crude oil was visible in the treatment flask.
All natural seawater is not the same. There are many factors such as geological locations, tide and other conditions. Some oil degrading microbes exist in the Gulf water but the number is relatively low. By augmenting oil degrading microbes, we can speed up the bioremediation process and help clean up the Gulf faster.
Treatment (representation): After treatment with OilClean, the natural microbe-rich seawater will be dispersed with the flux of tides and weather, and digested by filter-feeding organisms such as crabs, shrimp and shellfish. The seawater will become decontaminated -- as it was before the oil disaster.
Without microbial treatment, the oil-devastated Gulf coast wetlands and marshes will endure for countless decades.