Bioremediation of Oil Spills in Cold Environments: A Review

doi:10.1016/S1002-0160(09)60128-4

Pedosphere

Volume 19, Issue 3, June 2009, Pages 371-381

https://doi.org/10.1016/S1002-0160(09)60128-4 Get rights and content

ABSTRACT

Oil spills have become a serious problem in cold environments with the ever-increasing resource exploitation, transportation, storage, and accidental leakage of oil. Several techniques, including physical, chemical, and biological methods, are used to recover spilled oil from the environment. Bioremediation is a promising option for remediation since it is effective and economic in removing oil with less undue environmental damages. However, it is a relatively slow process in cold regions and the degree of success depends on a number of factors, including the properties and fate of oil spilled in cold environments, and the major microbial and environmental limitations of bioremediation. The microbial factors include bioavailability of hydrocarbons, mass transfer through the cell membrane, and metabolic limitations. As for the environmental limitations in the cold regions, the emphasis is on soil temperatures, freeze-thaw processes, oxygen and nutrients availability, toxicity, and electron acceptors. There have been several cases of success in the polar regions, particularly in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions. However, the challenges and constraints for bioremediation in cold environments remain large.

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: Project supported by the 100 Talents Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. 2004407).

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Bioremediation of Oil Spills in Cold Environments: A Review

ABSTRACT

Int. Biodeter. Biodegr.

Cold Reg. Sci. Technol.

Cold Reg. Sci. Technol.

Adv. Space Res.

Cold Reg. Sci. Technol.

Adv. Space Res.

J. Contam. Hydrol.

Curr. Opin. Biotechnol.

FEMS Microbiol. Rev.

Bioremediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated polar soils

Extremophiles.

Microbial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons: an environmental perspective

Microbiol. Rev.

Microbial hydrocarbon degradation—bioremediation of oil spills

J. Chem. Technol. Biotechnol.

Hydrocarbon biodegradation and oil spill bioremediation

Adv. Microb. Ecol.

Effects of hydrocarbon spills on the temperature and moisture regimes of cryosols in the Ross Sea region

Antarct. Sci.

Spill evaluation of petroleum products in freezing ground

Polar Rec.

Site investigations of fuel spill migration into permafrost

J. Cold Reg. Eng.

Enhancement and inhibition of microbial activity in hydrocarbon-contaminated arctic soils: implications for nutrient amended bioremediation

Environ. Sci. Technol.

Effectiveness of bioremediation for the Exxon Valdez oil spill

Nature.

Transport and reaction processes in bioremediation of organic contaminants. 1. Review of bacterial degradation and transport

Int. J. Chem. React. Eng.

The use of permafrost for the storage of oil and oil products and the burial of toxic industrial wastes in the Arctic

Polar Rec.

Russia Pipeline Oil Spill Study

Some effects of oil on the physical and chemical characteristics of wet tundra soils

Arctic.

Advances in engineered remediation for use in the Arctic and Antarctica

Polar Rec.

Cryoprotective properties of water in the Earth cryolithosphere and its role in exobiology

Orig. Life Evol. Biosph.