Effectiveness of a bioremediation product in degrading the oil spilled in the 1991 Arabian Gulf War

Results are reported from laboratory studies on the effectiveness of a commercially available product, consisting of a mixture of naturally occurring micro-organisms, for degrading the oily mousse resulting from oil spills during the Gulf War. Oil concentrations of 5, 10 and 20 g per litre of sea water were used in the experiments, and in some cases nutrients were added. The bacteria could degrade some fractions of the oil, the extent of biodegradation depending on the amount of nutrients and/or bacteria relative to the oil concentration. Addition of nutrients alone could enhance biodegradation of the oil. However, addition of nutrients or bacteria resulted not only in degradation of the n-alkane fraction of the oil but also caused dispersion of considerable amounts of the non-alkane components into the water and this could have adverse effects on marine organisms.