No matter the safety precautions, spills will sometimes occur. Cleaning the soil afterwards is difficult, expensive and time-consuming.
If you don’t clean the soil, the gas and oil will move from the soil and pollute nearby streams, rivers and lakes
No matter the safety precautions, spills will sometimes occur. Cleaning the soil afterwards is difficult, expensive and time-consuming.
If you don’t clean the soil, the gas and oil will move from the soil and pollute nearby streams, rivers and lakes. Site owners often resort to digging up soil and dumping it an landfill.
The digging approach is hugely destructive. Above-ground buildings and plants are destroyed to dig massive holes in the ground. The contaminated soil is hauled to a treatment facility or, more commonly, a secure landfill.
Companies, government and the public like digging because it solves the local problem with a week or two of intensive activity. It’s also a visible commitment by the company and the government to manage the environment.
What people don’t see is the environmental damage caused by removing the foundation of an ecosystem — the soil. They also don’t see the dangers to the workers and communities as toxic soil is moved through their towns and communities on the way to a landfill.
Time and patience
As we see in other spheres, individuals promoting simple solutions to complex problems are often lauded. But ecology is complex and it’s subtle. And the quick way to do things is often the wrong way to do things.
Instead, why not nudge the natural soil ecosystem to clean itself?
“In situ” remediation of an oil or gas spill — doing it on site — is not difficult, but there is a delicate art to achieving success.
Soil bacteria and fungi will naturally degrade oil a