Integration of biotechnology in remediation and pollution prevention activities

摘要

The North American Free Trade Agreement/North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation provides a mechanism for an international collaboration between the US, Canada, and Mexico to jointly develop, modify, or refine technologies that remediate or protect the environment. The Environmental Sciences Division (ESD) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is involved in basic and applied research on the fate, transport, and remediation of contaminants; environmental assessment; environmental engineering; and demonstrations of advanced remediation technologies. In addition to remediating contaminated sites, research also focuses on life-cycle analyses of industrial processes and the production of green technologies. The author focuses this discussion on subsurface remediation and pollution prevention; however, the research activities encompass water, soil and air and many of the technologies are applicable to all environments. The discussion focuses on the integration of biotechnology with remediation activities and subsequently linking these biological processes to other remediation technologies.