Environmental remediation technologies such as bioremediation can provide long-term solutions to improve the quality of air, water and land affected by traditional industrial activities. Read on to explore the benefits of bioremediation and decide if it's right for your site. The EPA says bioremediation uses either aerobic or anaerobic microorganisms to reduce environmental impacts on air, water, and soil. Microorganisms do this by breaking down the chemicals in question into non-toxic substances over time and using them as a source of energy. In essence, bioremediation is a means of eliminating harmful environmental influences. This benefits individual human health and the environmental system as a whole. Bioremediation helps purify water sources, create healthier soils, and improve air quality around the world. However, unlike excavation-based remediation processes, which can be destructive, bioremediation is less interventional and can facilitate remediation of environmental impacts without damaging sensitive ecosystems. Cost efficient: If you're in charge of an area that needs cleanup, you know that having an impact on the environment doesn't come cheap. Luckily, bioremediation is a very cheap technology. The cost of treating hazardous waste landfills with bioremediation is typically significantly lower than the cost of using conventional treatment methods. Scalable: Bioremediation technology is easily scalable to treat areas ranging from small landfills to large water treatment plants. For example, wastewater treatment plants are the world's largest bioremediation companies, collecting and treating approximately 34 billion gallons of wastewater each day in the United States alone. The sheer size of this company proves how flexible bioremediation really is. His use of EWI's bioremediation to treat a Missouri site is an excellent example of the benefits of bioremediation. EWI has implemented a bioremediation remediation approach to treat approximately 6,000 cubic meters of contaminated soil and groundwater associated with decades of industrial activity. The bioremediation work was conducted in a challenging urban environment and resulted in a net 95% reduction in chemical concentrations, enabling future beneficial use of assets in the area. Ultimately, bioremediation is one of the most flexible, scalable, and cost-effective remediation methods. Companies like Environmental Works can tailor a bioremediation project to a site's specific needs, making it one of the most comprehensive environmental interventions available today. Do you have questions about the benefits of bioremediation? If you don't know how to proceed with a fix, call the environment. Our in-house experts are always ready to help. Learn more about your organization's planning and compliance needs. In addition, we can explore how we can prepare ourselves as bioremediation standards evolve. Because bioremediation is a natural process, it is generally recognized as an acceptable waste disposal process for contaminants such as soil. The presence of contaminants increases the number of microorganisms that can decompose them. As the contaminant degrades, the biodegradable population decreases. Residues for processing are usually harmless products and include carbon dioxide, water and cellular biomass. In theory, bioremediation can help completely destroy various contaminants. Many compounds that are legally considered dangerous can be transformed into harmless products. This eliminates potential future liability associated with handling and disposing of pollutants.