Bacteria devoured methane gas from gulf oil spill, scientists say

The Washington Post ^ | January 6, 2011 | Brian Vastag

[aruanan]

In my short story however, the EVIL envirowhackos broke into the lab and stole a culture of the bacteria before they were ‘ready’ (ie the mutagen was still acting on the DNA) and when these aberrant bacteria were released into the environment to fight a small spill in Charleston harbour (near a “sensitive” area of course) they did in fact metabolize the oil. BUT!!! due to their incomplete genetic transformation the excreted a powerful carcinogen as they PARTIALLY metabolized the crude oil.

I remember another story in which the bacteria went on to consume all the oil in the world.

[Blueflag]

You’re welcome. Methane is a very natural and beneficial component of God’s natural carbon cycle. It has both geologic and metabolic sources. It is odourless and NON-TOXIC. Biologically, in terms of tonnage cycled, it is respired/excreted far more than it is metabolised (eaten as ‘food’).

DO NOT fear methane. You don’t want it in you water well, and you don’t want it building up in confined spaces (it IS natural gas after all) and like most ANY gas can be suffocating if it displaces atmospheric gases (ie in a coal mine) but otherwise it is HARMLESS to humans.

[Blueflag]

My first story was like that, but I changed it because I couldn’t make the story work rationally. Specifically I needed a metabolic ‘oxidizer’ to be present along with the food (oil/refined products) not just the ‘food’ supply. In other words, the bacteria needed an abundant source of oxygen or sulfur in order to metabolise the oil(s). I couldn’t create (for my story) (a) a plausible analog of the (anaerobic) lactic acid cycle (what gives you cramps when you are out of shape cardiovascular-wise) so the bacteria COULD derive food energy from oil in the absence of an ‘oxidizer’ or hydrogen acceptor, and (b) couldn’t work out the chemical-bond energy mechanism for a self-sustaining demon bug metabolism.

I wasn’t willing to go forward with “magic happens here” as the mechanism for the bacteria to consume stores of oil. BUT i did work it out where the oil stores could be contaminated with nasty demon bugs and cause problems! Since it didn’t work, really, I wrote the second story. I got a B/A cuz my creative writing teacher thought it was too technical to be entertaining. Tell that to Tom Clancy ;-)

[bray]

So were not all going to die and the Gulf isn’t going to be an oceanographic desert? Drill baby drill.

GO DUCKS!

[aruanan]

I wasn’t willing to go forward with “magic happens here” as the mechanism for the bacteria to consume stores of oil.

Which is probably why bacteria at depth that feed on hydrocarbons don't have an explosion of growth because their oxygen supplies are so limited in spite of relatively unlimited food supply.

[Mike Darancette]

It may be different for Methane released from the land or shallower seas.

[Freedom_Is_Not_Free]

Fascinating. Most cool.

[Scythian]

Often times the resulting output from bacteria are more harmful than the compound they are consuming. Just a thought ...

[Wonder Warthog]

Interesting (and you must be a real SF nut if you were writing stuff like that in HS). Me too, but I've never had the urge to write.

The critical distinction between your story and my hypothesis is that in my case, the bacteria would be the naturally occurring one rather than genetically modified. Ole Mom Nature (red of fang and claw) already knows how to handle them.

[Wonder Warthog]

"Methane is essentially INSOLUBLE in salt water. Methane GAS, originating from the busted well head or from sublimating methane hydrate(s) would NOT persist in the marine environment under ANY circumstances. The methane CH4 would either escape into the atmosphere or reform as crystalline methane hydrate."

Sorry, not correct. "Essemtially insoluble" is NOT the same as "completely insoluble". "Some" methane WILL dissolve:

www.geochem-model.org/publications/43-GCA_2006_3369.pdf

Yeah, a some of it made it to the surface and escaped, and some was trapped on the sea floor as hydrate, but a signficant fraction also dissolved as the hydrocarbon colum was rising through the FIVE MILES of depth in those regions where the temps are too high for hydrate formation.

[chessplayer]

Good, old yankee-doodle-scientists. Real patriots,,,unlike those other traitorous, commie-pinko scientists.

[chessplayer]

Did`nt methane eating bacteria exist in the past, or are they a relatively recent form of life?

“Clathrate gun hypothesis”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clathrate_gun_hypothesis

[Blueflag]

Not flaming you, but ... a scientifically weak response from you. Here’s why:

I did not, specifically and deliberately, write that methane IS insoluble. Only YOU used the word “completely”. No real scientist disputes facts— but DOES dispute hypotheses, methods, conclusions and conjecture; and factually CH4 does (barely) dissolve in sea water. But let’s stick to what that really means, especially compared to other gases that dissociate in water, and also those that have a biological impact.

Secondly, CH4 gas solubility *IS* well documented and in comparison to other biologically active gases like CO2 or H2S is and was (temporarily) present in the cold salt water as a solute at metabolically insignificant levels. ie it had NO effect on the biome.

Thirdly, CH4 gas is (AIR) NON-TOXIC to aerobic marine life, except in suffocating quantities.

Fourth - A release of CH4 gas into the cold depths of the Gulf would NATURALLY cause an ostensibly detectable increase in dissolved methane, which, absent ANY biological activity, WOULD obey the laws of physics and known gas laws and NATURALLY return to a steady state based on solubility, temperature pressure and salinity/ionization.

Fifth - To claim that the thousands of tons of released gaseous methane would dissolve into the sea water in quantities sufficient to support a bloom in (some heretofore unknown) bacteria that thrive on CH4 is absurd. Did you look at the fractions in the release? By volume and mass, the CH4 fraction was huge, even in comparison to the volume of crude released. We even had a discussion about this on FR. I can’t find that thread of course. Were this a spill of organic iron or phosphate compounds, we’d have a real bloom/death on our hands. (nee the Gulf dead zone)

Fifth - marine biologists are well aware of (naturally occurring) bacteria that are happy to ‘gobble up’ hydrocarbons - ESPECIALLY dissolved or colloidal/emulsified liquid (higher molecular weight) hydrocarbons. I’ve since forgotten the genus/species. The lower molecular weight hydrocarbons and the aromatics DO tend to dissipate faster (either by evaporation, dissolution or biological consumption) while the heavier ones DO tend to form the more persistent tar balls we see. They take longer to metabolize and dissipate.

Sixth: “scientists” used to believe the sun revolved around the earth and burned heretics who reported the contrary. I am confident about what I have written. But. *IF* a good bit of research showed me I am wrong, and my ‘knowledge’ is shown to be a ‘belief’ ... I will (un)happily eat crow and become an ardent and strident convert to methane gas disaster believer.

Net: bacteria naturally metabolize oil spills, and this is NOT news. Also to report that bacteria are the reason methane GAS from a benthic release has gone away is scientifically and biologically absurd.

I sincerely enjoy the debate. Please do not infer any personal animus or attack.

FRegards,

Blueflag

[In Maryland]

"This lays out an interesting option for future spills, which is to deliberately introduce both dispersant and cultured bacteria, even further accelerating the process. I doubt that the bacteria would survive if mixed directly with the dispersant, but introducing them as a second flow-stream is certainly possible.

That is certainly an interesting option, but one that I hope will be approached with the greatest caution. Time and again, I believe, we are seeing that nature has ways of healing itself. An intelligence far greater than our own has created an environment which responds to challenges, as we have seen in this case. With all due respect to those who study the subject, I believe we understand the inter-action of nature's forces very imperfectly and we should approach any effort to accelerate her processes with the greatest caution. What would be the unitended consequences of cultivating and dispersing this bacteria? I think there is one being who probably knows - and God has not been very prolific in writing it up for scientific journals!

Of course God gave mankind the gift of intelligence and learning and we should use God's gifts to understand his creation as well as we can. But we need the humility to accept we understand imperfectly and should proceed with great caution only after careful study and experimentation.

That's my opinion anyway ...

[A. Patriot]

Mother Gaia has healed Herself again from assaults of heartless, Earth destroying Capitalists. /sarcasm

[WKUHilltopper]

Sounds more like devouring BS to me.

[burroak]

I guess it’s another example of what I heard many years ago: “Mother Earth is a tough old broad.”

[Wonder Warthog]

Actually, “your” response is weak, and doesn’t address my point. The low solubility of methane in seawater does not preclude the dissolution of quite large total amounts, even at low levels of solubility. The Gulf is a big place. That amount may indeed be a very small fraction of the total methane emitted, but plenty large enough to cause a bacterial bloom. After all, the oceanographers MEASURED a dissolved methane level that was quite high compared to normal backgrounds. That is now gone. Where did it go?? I assume that those folks are sufficiently learned to know what the standard “decay curve” of methane concentration is with time in the absence of bacteria, as those are WELL known simple physical processes (per my linked paper). They are saying that the methane disappeared much more quickly than expected. At this point, I don’t see any reason to doubt them, and I do see reason to doubt you.

[Blueflag]

Remind me not to hire you ;-)

[Blueflag]

Hit POST too fast when the phone rang. Hang on. day job issues.