Scientists of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory indicate a newly discovered species of carbon-eating microbes found in the Gulf of Mexico could be responsible for the BP oil spill degenerating far more quickly than expected.
Researchers performing a study found high concentrations of the bacteria in a deep plume of oil near the spill site during May and June.
Most of the spill appears to be gone, and the prodigious oil eaters are now feeding on their “dead brethren “, now that a large portion of the spill has been neutralized.
Since the deadly BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion in April, these bacteria have been feeding upon the huge oil plume resting on the Gulf of Mexico.
Oceanospirillales is a new species of dominant microbe in the oil plume called Oil Eater Bacteria. These microorganisms are of immense use to humanity due to their unique ability to consume oil swiftly.
It is possible that when these bacteria are cultured, they would become a valuable tool against future oil spills that may pose a threat to the environment.
People following the researchers all over the world do not consider oil-eating microbes a discovery. Such bacteria have been known to exist before. However, such organisms could work in the deep seas where human access is definitely limited.
Most of the funding for the oil spill studies and the bacteria comes directly from BP. Coincidently; this research is coming from federal agencies and government laboratories.