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That paper says you need to collect soil samples quickly so you can classify the type of ignitable liquid that contaminated the soil. It does NOT say the soil

That paper says you need to collect soil samples quickly so you can classify the type of ignitable liquid that contaminated the soil. It does NOT say the soil is nontoxic and safe; or that it does not need to be cleaned up; or that it won't contaminate ground water. Those degraded compounds are still toxic af.

ars 3y ago
> Those degraded compounds are still toxic af. No they aren't. They degrade (eventually) to just water and CO2. That was not the only paper on the topic, there are tons more. I picked that one because it highlighted just how quickly bacteria consume the gasoline. Gasoline and oil are natural products that will completely and harmlessly biodegrade, they only cause trouble when collected in bulk, but do not have long-term harmful effects once they are diluted, because bacteria completely consume them.
- dzhiurgis 3y ago
  Yeah, the planet will be fine, it's just humans and entire ecosystems that will be screwed.
  - ars 3y ago
    Nothing bad will happen from these leaks, gasoline is very biodegradable. Humans will be unharmed and the ecosystem will be unharmed.
    - scotty79 3y ago
      Which bacteria eat benzene specifically?
      - philipkglass 3y ago
        Pseudoxanthomonas spadix BD-a59, for one: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2592918/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2592918/ This is an interesting study. They identified the species by culturing it from contaminated soil sampled at a South Korean gas station. The study also mentions previously identified bacteria that eat BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene -- closely related hydrocarbons having a single aromatic ring) and explains why there are likely to be many as-yet-unknown BTEX-degrading species. The short version: "Countless other BTEX-degrading bacteria may be present in the soil or sediment but may not compete well in aqueous slurries or perhaps cannot grow in minimal medium; thus, this alternative pool of BTEX-degrading populations is likely to be overlooked. Our study reinforced this concept."
- rgbrenner 3y ago
  With the eventual heat death of the universe everything will be inert… in the meantime this stuff can harm you. bacteria isn’t magic.. it requires the right conditions and time, and depending on the additives and type of soil/clay that process may take a very long time. Oil has been in the ground hundreds of millions of years with being broken down by bacteria. drinking MTBE, crude oil, or even partial degraded benzene is not good for you. There’s a reason remediation programs for gasoline stations exist.

ars 3y ago

> Those degraded compounds are still toxic af. No they aren't. They degrade (eventually) to just water and CO2. That was not the only paper on the topic, there are tons more. I picked that one because it highlighted just how quickly bacteria consume the gasoline. Gasoline and oil are natural products that will completely and harmlessly biodegrade, they only cause trouble when collected in bulk, but do not have long-term harmful effects once they are diluted, because bacteria completely consume them.

dzhiurgis 3y ago
Yeah, the planet will be fine, it's just humans and entire ecosystems that will be screwed.
- ars 3y ago
  Nothing bad will happen from these leaks, gasoline is very biodegradable. Humans will be unharmed and the ecosystem will be unharmed.
  - scotty79 3y ago
    Which bacteria eat benzene specifically?
    - philipkglass 3y ago
      Pseudoxanthomonas spadix BD-a59, for one: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2592918/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2592918/ This is an interesting study. They identified the species by culturing it from contaminated soil sampled at a South Korean gas station. The study also mentions previously identified bacteria that eat BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene -- closely related hydrocarbons having a single aromatic ring) and explains why there are likely to be many as-yet-unknown BTEX-degrading species. The short version: "Countless other BTEX-degrading bacteria may be present in the soil or sediment but may not compete well in aqueous slurries or perhaps cannot grow in minimal medium; thus, this alternative pool of BTEX-degrading populations is likely to be overlooked. Our study reinforced this concept."
rgbrenner 3y ago
With the eventual heat death of the universe everything will be inert… in the meantime this stuff can harm you. bacteria isn’t magic.. it requires the right conditions and time, and depending on the additives and type of soil/clay that process may take a very long time. Oil has been in the ground hundreds of millions of years with being broken down by bacteria. drinking MTBE, crude oil, or even partial degraded benzene is not good for you. There’s a reason remediation programs for gasoline stations exist.