Deepwater Horizon Oil Buried in Gulf Coast Beaches Could Take More Than 30 Years to Biodegrade

Deepwater Horizon Oil Buried in Gulf Coast Beaches Could Take More Than 30 Years to Biodegrade – SEPTEMBER 2, 2019 (From Newswise / September 2, 2019) TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Golf ball-size clods of weathered crude oil originating from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon catastrophe could remain buried in sandy Gulf Coast beaches for decades, according to…

Smruthi Karthikeyan inoculates cultures of the Macondimonas isolate recovered from oiled Pensacola beach sand. (Provided by Smruthi Karthikeyan)

Grad Student Karthikeyan Uses Genetics to Understand Microbial Oil Degradation in Beach Sands

Petroleum hydrocarbons released by oil spills can accumulate on beaches and in nearshore sediments, potentially creating health risks for humans and coastal organisms. However, the highly variable conditions of beach environments make it difficult to determine the long-term behavior and fate of hydrocarbons in sands and sediment.