Bacteria can eat pesticide
3 Feb 2003
Endosulfan, a chlorine-containing pesticide used worldwide, is causing problems to environmental scientists.
Classified by the US Environmental Protection Agency as having extremely high acute toxicity, the pesticide has a half-life of up to six years, and as some 1.38million pounds of the substance are used each year, a method to break it down quickly and safely is needed urgently.
The answer, it appears, might be biological remediation. Researchers from the University of California-Riverside and the University of Agriculture in Faisalabad, Pakistan, have found that two microorganisms, Fusarium sp. and Panadoraea sp., are capable of breaking down endosulfan into harmless by-products.
Tests showed that both organisms could 'drastically reduce' levels of the pesticide in soil, and according to project leader William Frankenberger of Riverside, could have 'tremendous potential' for large-scale application on contaminated soils, waste dumps, water bodies, industrial effluents or stockpiles of the pesticide. Currently, such residues are incinerated or landfilled.
