Ward's® Oil-Degrading Microbes Lab Activity

Excellent Introduction to Natural Environmental Cleanup

Bioremediation, a process that uses natural organisms such as bacteria, fungi, or yeast to break down harmful chemicals into less toxic or nontoxic compounds, is one of the most promising ways biotechnology is used to treat chemical spills and hazardous waste problems. This comprehensive lab activity covers a variety of investigations, such as culturing microbes that dissolve hydrocarbons in a medium containing a petroleum product, comparing the physical characteristics of oil before and after degradation, comparing the growth and oil-degrading ability of a bacterial and a fungal strain, simulating an ocean and shore oil spill to evaluate cleanup procedures, and more. The activities can be completed in three 45-minute lab sessions. The kit comes with enough materials for six setups, a teacher’s guide, and student copymasters.