Madsen E L, Sinclair J L, Ghiorse W C
Section of Microbiology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853.
Science. 1991 May 10;252(5007):830-3. doi: 10.1126/science.2028258.
Conventional approaches for proving in situ biodegradation of organic pollutants in aquifers have severe limitations. In the approach described here, patterns in a comprehensive set of microbiological activity and distribution data were analyzed. Measurements were performed on sediment samples gathered at consistent depths in aquifer boreholes spanning a gradient of contaminant concentrations at a buried coal tar site. Microbial adaptation to polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was demonstrated by mineralization of naphthalene and phenanthrene in samples from PAH-contaminated, but not adjacent pristine, zones. Furthermore, contaminant-stimulated in situ bacterial growth was indicated because enhanced numbers of protozoa and their bacterial prey were found exclusively in contaminated subsurface samples. The data suggest that many convergent lines of logically linked indirect evidence can effectively document in situ biodegradation of aquifer contaminants.
证明含水层中有机污染物原位生物降解的传统方法存在严重局限性。在此描述的方法中，对一整套微生物活性和分布数据中的模式进行了分析。在一个埋藏煤焦油场地，对跨越污染物浓度梯度的含水层钻孔中一致深度采集的沉积物样本进行了测量。在受多环芳烃（PAH）污染但不相邻的原始区域的样本中，萘和菲的矿化证明了微生物对多环芳烃的适应性。此外，由于仅在受污染的地下样本中发现原生动物及其细菌猎物数量增加，表明存在污染物刺激的原位细菌生长。数据表明，许多逻辑上相互关联的间接证据的汇聚线可以有效地证明含水层污染物的原位生物降解。
