Demonstrating Monitored Natural Attenuation Using
Bio-Trap Samplers

Greg Davis, Dora Ogles and Brett Baldwin (Microbial Insights, Inc.) Kerry Sublette (University of Tulsa) Bob Pirkle and Pat McLoughlin, (Microseeps Inc.)

A large component of natural attenuation (MNA) is demonstrating that a specific biodegradation process is truly occurring at a given site. Stable Isotope Probing (SIP) is a technique that couples the use of stable isotopic compounds (as surrogates) along with molecular based biological tools (MBTs) to prove that biological degradation of a specific contaminant (i.e. benzene, MTBE, etc.) is occurring.

MI has developed a direct in-situ technique for performing SIP in conjunction with our Bio-Trap samplers. Using this approach, Bio-Trap samplers are “baited” with a known concentration of a 13C enriched compound and analyzed to demonstrate whether or not the desired biological process is occurring.

Herein the analytical tools and results obtained from a variety of contaminated sites (MTBE, benzene, chlorobenzene, DCE, and TCE) will be discussed.

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Abstract B-025, in: Bruce M. Sass (Conference Chair), Remediation of Chlorinated and Recalcitrant Compound—2008.  Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference on Remediation of Chlorinated and Recalcitrant Compounds (Monterey,CA; May 2008). ISBN 1-57477-163-9, published by Battelle, Columbus, OH, www.battelle.org/chlorcon.