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Two methods used to clean up the contamination of a polluted ecosystems are dispersants and bioengineered bacteria. Chemicals that allow substances that won't dissolve in water (e.g. oil) to be dispersed into the water are aptly named dispersants. Bacteria that feed on oil can be used to help break down oil particles at spill sites. What are some pros and cons of using a dispersant versus bacteria to deal with a very large spill and how would each one impact the environment?

Respuesta :

The cons of using dispersants are their toxicity to marine environment. Dispersants are also less effective on heavy oils. Dispersants result to oil sinking into the water column from the surface hence this spreads the effect of pollution. Advantages of dispersants are they reduce oil pollution impact onshore and also reduce its risks to marine animals with furs or plumage.


Advantages of using bacteria are that they consume the oil until no residue is left. The bacteria are not toxic like dispersants and reduce in number when the oil pollutant is degraded. Cons of bacteria are that they are unable to break down particular hydrocarbons; they are slow in degrading the oil and are only particularly effective in finishing off oil residue rather than cleaning up large oil spills.