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Researchers to explore microbes' potential for pollution cleanup
OAK RIDGE, Tenn., June 22, 2000 — Scientists studying the ability of bacteria to clean up contaminated groundwater and soil will be able to do basic research at a field site at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge Reservation.
DOE has selected its Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to operate a field research center located in Bear Creek Valley next to the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant. Scientists will use the center to conduct long-term field studies to better understand the biological, geologic and chemical processes that affect the way microorganisms may be able to clean up groundwater and subsurface sediments contaminated with radionuclides and metals.
The research will help DOE address a unique set of challenges associated with cleaning up huge amounts of groundwater and soil at its former weapons production sites around the country. These sites contain complex mixtures of pollutants, including radioactive wastes.
"We hope to better understand how microbes interact with groundwater and soil and the mechanisms of how the microorganisms can be used to consume and contain contaminants," said ORNL's David Watson, who will manage the research center for the lab.
The center includes a 243-acre contaminated area and a 404-acre uncontaminated background area. Different parts of the center have different mixtures of pollutants. Scientists will do research in small test plots, less than one acre in size. Experiments will include injection of very small quantities of tracers, nutrients or microorganisms. The background area will be used for comparison or control studies.
For the first six months, center staff will perform hydraulic testing, tracer testing, groundwater and sediment sampling and other activities to better characterize the contaminated and background areas. This information will help scientists identify specific plots for their field studies, expected to take place over the next five to 10 years. Teams of researchers from universities and DOE laboratories, including ORNL, will conduct the field studies.
The center's research will be useful because, while bioremediation represents a potential low-cost approach for cleanup, researchers lack a fundamental understanding of how bioremediation works. For example, while it might work for a single contaminant, it might not work as well when contaminants are mixed. Similarly, it might work in one type of geologic environment, but not in another. Researchers will use the center to develop an understanding of the complex factors affecting bioremediation. They will also focus on ways to enhance the reactions of microbes. They will not, however, introduce any genetically engineered organisms to the site.
The department selected the Oak Ridge site following an extensive peer review process and an environmental impact review under the National Environmental Policy Act. The department published an Environmental Assessment for comment earlier this year and issued a Finding of No Significant Impact in April.
DOE funding of $900,000 will support the first year of operation at the center. Information on the program is available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.lbl.gov/NABIR.
ORNL is a DOE multiprogram facility operated by UT-Battelle.
http://www.teachingtools.com/CrudeEnergy/OilEnvironment.htm
his teaching guide is designed to complement the 20-minute video, Crude Energy. Click here to request the video. Please note that video supplies are limited and may no longer be available.
Oil may provide the ingredients for thousands of products we use every day, but it carries with it some potential problems. While oil is a product of the Earth, it can be harmful to the environment when it is brought to the surface if not handled properly.
Oil spills on land, rivers, bays and the ocean are mostly caused by accidents involving tankers, barges, pipelines, refineries and storage facilities. These accidents can be caused by human mistakes, carelessness or sometimes by natural disasters such as hurricanes or earthquakes. Deliberate acts by terrorists, countries at war, vandals, or illegal dumpers prove that oil spills aren’t always accidents.
In ocean saltwater, oil floats. It usually floats when spilled in fresh water (rivers or lakes) too. Rarely, very heavy oil will sink in fresh water, but generally, it spreads out rapidly across the water’s surface and forms a thin layer called an oil slick. As the spreading process continues the oil layer becomes thinner and starts to look like a rainbow. This fine layer is called a sheen. Sometimes after a rain, the same type of sheen is seen on roads or parking lots.
Oil spills are often harmful to marine birds, mammals and, sometimes, fish and shellfish. Birds are protected from the elements by their feathers, which overlap like tiles on a roof. The separate strands on each feather are bound together by rows of tiny hooks, creating a tight weave. The bird’s skin stays warm and dry underneath. However, oil can clog the feather’s strands and hooks and allow water to penetrate to the bird’s skin.
Oil also can damage the insulating ability of fur-bearing mammals such as sea otters. Many animals try to clean themselves but are poisoned after ingesting the oil.
Oil Spill Cleanup
When an oil spill occurs in the United States, the cleanup is sometimes taken care of by the responsible party but often requires the assistance of various local, state and federal agencies and volunteer organizations. The responsible party, however, is required by law to report the spill to the federal government.
Nearly 14,000 spills are reported each year in our nation, accounting for about 100 million gallons of oil. That’s equal to the volume of about Photo of polar bear.100 average school gymnasiums.
The largest single U.S. spill was in Alaska in 1989. An Exxon oil tanker ran aground to cause a spill of almost 11 million gallons of crude oil. It was a big spill, but only the 35th largest in the world. Surprisingly, 11 million gallons is less than 2 percent of the oil our country uses in one day, which sheds light on the tremendous volumes of oil that are shipped and handled safely.
A wide range of tools and techniques are used to clean oil spills. Mechanical containment or recovery is the biggest defense against oil-spill damage in the United States. Containment and recovery equipment includes a variety of booms, barriers and skimmers, as well as natural and synthetic materials that absorb oil. Mechanical containment is used to capture and store spilled oil until it can be disposed of properly.
Generally, the first step is to contain the oil so that it doesn’t spread more, said Brian Stanfield, executive vice president at Acme Products Co. in Tulsa, Okla., which specializes in oil spill cleanup. A common tool for containing oil is a boom, or a floating barrier. A boom, for example, may be placed around a leaking tanker to collect the oil. Stanfield said the goal is to increase the concentration of the oil in a smaller area so it can be collected easier.
A skimmer, which is a boat that skims spilled oil from the water surface, can then be brought in to collect the biggest part of the oil. Vacuum trucks often are used to vacuum oil from the water surface or beaches. Sorbents, big sponges that absorb oil, are particularly useful on oil sheens and thin slicks too scattered for skimming.
In-situ or “in-place” burning is a method of burning freshly spilled oil, usually while it’s floating on the water. Dispersants, chemicals that act as detergents to break oil into tiny droplets and dilute a spill’s effect, are commonly used as well.
Nature's Cleaning: Microbes
Aside from all the chemicals and gadgets that humans have produced to clean up spills, nature has a way of cleaning itself. One of the most interesting techniques for cleaning spills involves speeding up a process that has been around since millions of years before man. Biodegradation is a natural process by which microbes alter and break down complex compounds into simpler substances to gain energy and nutrients. The resulting products can be carbon dioxide, water and simpler compounds that do not affect the environment.
Microbes include bacteria, archaea, fungi and protists. Viruses might also be categorized as a major type of microbe, though there is debate as to whether viruses can be considered living creatures.
Photo of fox.Microbiologists have found microbes living just about everywhere, including in soil, water, air, animals, plants, rocks and even in humans. A handful of garden soil contains hundreds if not thousands of different kinds of microbes. A single teaspoon of that soil contains over 1,000,000,000 bacteria, about 120,000 fungi and 25,000 algae. Microbes have been around for billions of years because they are able to adapt to the ever-changing environment.
However, the biodegradation process is relatively slow, and when an oil spill occurs, workers must act fast to protect the environment. Speeding up the process can be accomplished in two ways: adding fertilizing (nutrients) and/or seeding (adding more microbes). When technology is used to speed up the process, it is known as bioremediation. In recent years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has determined that bioremediation is a safe and effective oil-removal option.
Oil isn’t the only substance tested for cleanup by microbes. Certain U.S. Army installations have tested the effectiveness of using microbes to remove explosive products deposited in soil after years of ammunition manufacturing and disposal. First the explosives-tainted soil is mixed with water and placed in a treatment container. The mixture is given regular doses of oxygen and a food source, which spur growth in microbes that already live in the soil. While “eating” the food, the microbes break down the explosives so the soil can be returned to its original site.
Even the most complex science can’t make up for the birds, animals and beaches that have been harmed by oil spills. That’s why prevention is being stressed more and more. The oil industry is coming up with safer ways to produce, transport and store oil. Safer vessel designs play a big role. Examples include double hulls, improved steering systems, improved radar detection systems, satellite and radio communication and computer monitoring of the vessel’s operations. Better aids for navigation systems also help reduce risks.
Sources
“Biological Remediation Overview.” Environmental Directions, Inc. 1998.
“Cleaning Up with Bacteria.” Discovery Channel School. 1999. Discovery Channel Communications, Inc. 27 May 2000. http://school.discovery.com/schoolhome.html
Mike Buckley, “Bioslurry Microbes Tackle Large Cleanup Challenge,” 1997.http://aec-www.apgea.army.mil:8080/prod/usaec/op/update/spr97/bioslurr.htm,
May 2000.
Ray Gordon, “Bioremediation and its Application to Exxon Valdez Oil Spill in Alaska,” 1994.
“Oil Pollution and Birds.” Canadian Wildlife Service. 28 Jan. 1999.
“Oil Spill Basics: A Primer for Students.” Oil Spill Intelligence Report. Cutter Information Corp. 2000. http://www.cutter.com/osir/primer.htm
“Oil Spill Prevention and Response.” American Petroleum Institute. 26 Feb. 1999. http://www.api.org/oilspills/
“What’s the Story on Oil Spills?” Office of Response and Restoration, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 26 March 1998. http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/kids/spills.html
Black Gold | Recipe for Oil | Finding Oil
Technology Advances | Oil & Environment | Hybrid Vehicles
Write to Bob Brehm and let him know your thoughts.
bob@usmcapital.com
The board looks good. When this thing breaks, they will come out of the woodwork. Sitting long and strong, I hate chasing pennystocks after they break, it's always best to be in it before.
SSWM & CTRADE to Finalize Plans with WaterChef for International Sales; Companies to Provide Pure Dr
CARLSBAD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 30, 2005--Bruce Beattie, CEO of Sub Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc., (OTCBB:SSWM) announced today that its Chief Engineer is meeting this week with C TradeUSA, Inc. at the WaterChef, Inc. (OTCBB:WTER) manufacturing facility in New York to review water system engineering designs and implementation plans to provide pure drinking water to people in third world countries.
To coordinate and implement the rollout of water systems in many countries with varying engineering, political and financial requirements, SSWM parent company U.S. Microbics, Inc. (OCTBB:BUGS) has formed Worldwide Water Systems, Inc.(WWSI), a water systems integrator, in a joint venture with C. TradeUSA, Inc. WWSI will use the PureSafe Water Station technology supplied by WaterChef Inc., a water purification equipment vendor, as well as the engineering and project management services of SSWM to deliver reliable water systems beginning in 2005.
Bruce Beattie, CEO, commented, "After many months of planning with CTRADE and WaterChef, this large project, which could impact millions of people worldwide, is finally in the last stages of design and manufacturing review of the modular, scalable system that can meet the drinking water needs of many third world countries. All the parties are excited and anxious to unveil the water system designed for economical delivery of drinking water in hundreds of locations worldwide."
About Sub-Surface Waste Management
A subsidiary of U.S. Microbics, Inc. (OTCBB:BUGS), Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc. provides comprehensive civil and environmental engineering project management services including specialists to design, permit, build and operate environmental waste clean-up treatment systems using conventional, biological and filtration technologies. SSWM is capitalizing on its expertise and technology by forming strategic alliances and joint ventures with well-established firms.
About C. TradeUSA, Inc.
The President of C. TradeUSA, Nick Kontonicolas, has over 18 years experience in International Corporate Development and Investing. The C.Trade Group of Companies have extensive holdings in the United States as well as in China, Latin America, Greece, and Bangladesh. C.Trade's portfolio of companies specializes in biotechnology, water remediation, and automotive consultation services. For more information about C. TradeUSA, call its President, Nick Kontonicolas at 212/709-8083 or contact him at ctradeusa@juno.com
Week of Meetings Lays Groundwork for Expanded Project Work in Mexico
CARLSBAD, CA (06/21/05) -- Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc. (OTCBB:SSWM) announced it has secured the services of Dr. Ricardo Lorden, President of Lorden Y Asociados of Mexico City, Mexico to advance its market presence and establish an office for environmental project work in Mexico to remediate contaminated soils.
As a matter of recent public record the Director General of Pemex (Petroleos Mexicanos) has stated that $1 Billion is being set aside for soil remediation in Mexico.
Bruce Beattie, CEO of SSWM, stated, "SSWM executives dedicated the past week in meetings with top executives in the regulated community ranging from the petroleum industry to livestock processing and their State and Federal regulators orchestrated by Dr. Lorden and his staff. SSWM, with established and on-going project cleanup work in Torreon, Mexico, using its registered Bio-Raptor(TM) treatment technology with teaming partner Grupo Bartlett, S.A. de C.V., presented its experience and dialogued ways to improve and accelerate the project execution process to meet the needs of regulated and regulator alike, and demonstrate to the people of Mexico that environmental compliance and cleanup is moving forward under the recent Federal and NAFTA mandates. This is an exciting time for SSWM in Mexico and we will continue to inform our shareholders of our progress as events develop."
About Sub-Surface Waste Management
Sub-Surface Waste Management Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of U.S. Microbics, Inc. (OTCBB:BUGS) and provides comprehensive civil and environmental engineering project management services including specialists to design, permit, build and operate environmental waste clean-up treatment systems using conventional, biological and filtration technologies. SSWM is capitalizing on its patented technologies registered in Mexico with SEMARNAT, a Federal regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance nationwide.
The information contained in this press release includes forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements usually contain the words "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "expect" or similar expressions that involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the company's status as a startup company with uncertain profitability, need for significant capital, uncertainty concerning market acceptance of its products, competition, limited service and manufacturing facilities, dependence on technological developments and protection of its intellectual property. The company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed herein. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences are discussed more fully in the "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis or Plan of Operation" and other sections of the company's Form 10-KSB and other publicly available information regarding the company on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company will provide you with copies of this information upon request.
Behind the Scenes of a
Successful Partnership:
An Interview with Sergio Reyes Lujan of the Instituto Mexicano del Petroleo (IMP)
In 2002, Dr. Gustavo Chapela Castañares, Director General of the Instituto Mexicano del Petróleo (IMP), asked the physicist Sergio Reyes Luján to become Director of the Institute’s environmental area. Sergio has rather unique qualifications that make him a well known environmentalist in Mexico. He has served with distinction as Undersecretary of Environment, was founding President of the National Ecological Institute (the Mexican equivalent of the EPA) and was the fourth Rector General of the Autonomous Metropolitan University in Mexico City. As Undersecretary of the Environment, Sergio established a personal relationship of trust and confidence with U.S. EPA Coordinator Bill Riley that facilitated the negotiation of difficult environmental issues affecting our common border and brought the U.S. and Mexico closer together to find solutions to common problems. Also significant: Sergio served as the signatory representing Mexico on the Montreal Protocols.
“Our alliance with Battelle allows us to amplify product offerings. The Alliance is stronger than sum of its parts and through collaboration we will be in a better position to enter into other countries and markets.” Sergio Reyes LujanBattelle is working closely with Sergio through our Alliance to support his efforts in bringing together the diverse capabilities from across the Institute and formulating a business plan to market those products and services to PEMEX and other clients. “We don’t have all the expertise we need in order to meet PEMEX’s demands,” stated Sergio.“Our Alliance with Battelle allows us to amplify our product offerings. The Alliance is stronger than the sum of its parts and through our collaboration we will be in a better position to enter into other countries and markets.”
Through the Alliance, we can tackle important problems with a regional impact. Sergio believes that the most serious environmental challenge facing Mexico is water. ’Our aquifers are having a lot of problems due to overexploitation. The second priority issue is deforestation—particularly in the South.”
While awareness of environmental problems has increased in recent years, “the importance of the environmental issues has decreased. . . . People are more interested in jobs, security and economy, than in environment. . . . In general, the environmental interests in the U.S. have decreased as well—We don’t see the presence of the U.S. in environmental issues internationally,” he lamented.
Sergio envisions success for our Alliance, stating that he believes within five years we will be working with state and local governments on water and waste treatment projects. Sergio also believes that “We will be operating together in two or three other countries as well . . . we will have a flagship laboratory in Veracruz managed in collaboration with Battelle.”
For further information, please contact Rick Chidester at (206) 528-3230, chidesterr@battelle.org.
WETLANDS
Reclaiming Lost Opportunities:
Remediation Supports Sustainable Development
Wetlands are among the world’s most valuable natural resources, both ecologically and economically. Yet many wetland sites are contaminated by chlorinated solvents and other difficult-to-remediate contaminants that pose daunting challenges to governments and environmental professionals interested in sustainable development. For example, the EPA has estimated that more than 20 percent of Superfund sites have groundwater plumes that discharge to wetlands or sensitive habitats.
Not only wetlands, but many other sites throughout the industrialized world are contaminated by solvents, herbicides, pesticides, heavy metals, and other contaminants that stem from both past and present industrial processes. Each contaminated site represents a lost economic opportunity. Before sustainable development can be realized, strategies and technologies for remediating this pervasive contamination must be developed and implemented. Battelle is organizing two major international environmental conferences to bring laboratory researchers and field practitioners together to present their latest findings.
Addressing wetland remediation issues requires the cooperation of a wide variety of disciplines. To facilitate strong partnerships among professionals who have not been accustomed to working together, Battelle is sponsoring Wetlands and Remediation: An International Conference, to be held November 16-17, 1999, in Salt Lake City, Utah, where wetlands and remediation experts will discuss:
* Remediation of contaminated wetlands by engineered and natural attenuation (reduction) approaches; and
* Use of natural and constructed wetlands for treating contaminated water and wastewater.
Jeff Means of Battelle will serve as Conference Chairman, with Rob Hinchee of Parsons Engineering Science as Co-Chairman. Co-sponsors include Parsons, U.S. Department of Defense’s Environmental Security Technology Certification Program/Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (ESTCP/SERDP), and the U. S. Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center (NFESC). Abstracts are due May 31. The proceedings will be published by Battelle Press.
Battelle is also sponsor and organizer of The Second International Conference on Remediation of Chlorinated and Recalcitrant Compounds, scheduled for May 22-25, 2000, in Monterey, California. Dr. Godage B. Wickramanayake and Arun Gavaskar of Battelle will serve as Chairman and Co-Chairman, respectively.
Co-sponsors include EnviroMetal Technologies, Inc., Geomatrix, Parsons Engineering Science, Inc., Regenesis, U.S. Microbics, Inc., and the U. S. Naval Facilities Engineering Command. Abstracts are due by August 31, 1999. A multi-volume set of proceedings will be published by Battelle shortly after the conference.
For information on registering for or exhibiting at either conference, contact The Conference Group (800) 783-6338, conferencegroup@compuserve.com). To inquire about the technical program for either conference or to request a Call for Abstracts, contact Karl Nehring at (614) 424-6510 or e-mail nehringk@battelle.org. Mr. Nehring and Carol Young of Battelle will serve as Conference Coordinators. The Battelle conference Web site is located at www.battelle.org/conferences.
Mexican university to fund SSWM unit groundwater cleanup at state direction
CARLSBAD, CA, Sept. 8, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware Inc. announced that its Mexico subsidiary company Environmental Tec International S.A. de C.V. (ETI) was named specifically in an official correspondence dated Sept. 1 and signed by Gov. Mario Marin Torres of the state of Puebla, Mexico, directing ETI strategic alliance and teaming partner the Zaragoza Graduate School of Studies of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) to provide immediate funding for engineering assessment and remediation of hydrocarbon discharges due to antiquated pipelines and storage tank farms. The recent Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) pipeline spills in Puebla have accounted for the contamination of hundreds of acres of productive farming land, rivers and lakes.
Bruce Beattie, CEO of SSWM stated, "In the Governor's letter UNAM was also instructed to work with ETI to form an Emergency Response Center in Puebla coordinating with the State's Ministry of Environment to train specialized environmental Engineers and Technicians to respond to future spills of hydrocarbons in the State."
On Friday September 2, 2005 Governor Mario Marin Torres held a press conference covered by local and national media reprimanding Pemex, the state owned oil company, for the irresponsible management of their petroleum pipelines in Mexico, specifically in the states of Puebla, Veracruz, Tabasco and Campeche. The following day, September 3, 2005, Mexico's leading newspaper -- The Reforma -- quoted the Governor as he stated that the three most recent spills of crude oil and gasoline have contaminated water reservoirs, farm lands and rivers, in some cases impacting up to hundreds of acres.
Governor Mario Marin Torres has formed an alliance with the governors of Veracruz, Mr. Fidel Herrera, Tabasco, Mr. Manuel Andrade and Campeche, Mr. Jorge Carlos Hurtado Valdez, to ensure immediate restoration and remediation of the areas affected with Pemex's crude oil and gasoline releases, as these states have experienced hundreds of hydrocarbons spills during this year.
Governor Mario Marin Torres has requested an immediate meeting with the President of Pemex, Mr. Luis Ramirez Corzo to obtain Pemex's immediate acceptance of these remediation activities and their financial support for the same.
Environmental Tech International will be responsible for the majority of the restoration activities vis-a-vis these contaminated areas, i.e., farming lands, rivers and water reservoirs in Puebla working through Gov. Mario Marin Torres and his secretary for the Ministry of Environment.
Sub-Surface Waste Management Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of U.S. Microbics Inc. (www.bugsatwork.com) and provides comprehensive civil and environmental engineering project management services including specialists to design, permit, build and operate environmental waste clean-up treatment systems using conventional, biological and filtration technologies. SSWM is capitalizing on its patented technologies registered in Mexico with SEMARNAT a Federal regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance nationwide.
Bioremediation in oil-contaminated sites: bacteria and surfactant accelerated remediation
Authors:
Strong-Gunderson, Janet M.; Guzman, Francisco
Affiliation:
AA(Oak Ridge National Lab.) AB(Instituto Mexicano del Petroleo)
Journal:
Proc. SPIE Vol. 2835, p. 2-4, Advanced Technologies for Environmental Monitoring and Remediation, Tuan Vo-Dinh; Ed. (SPIE Homepage)
Publication Date:
11/1996
Origin:
SPIE
Abstract Copyright:
(c) 1996 SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Bibliographic Code:
1996SPIE.2835....2S
Abstract
In Mexico, there are several environmental issues which are being addressed under the current governmental legislation. One important issue is restoring sites belonging to Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX). PEMEX is a large government owned oil company that regulates and manages the oil reserves. These sites are primarily contaminated with weathered hydrocarbons which are a consequence of extracting millions of barrels of oil. Within the southern regions of Mexico there are sites which were contaminated by activities and spills that have occurred during the past 30 years. PEMEX has taken the leadership in correcting environmental problems and is very concerned about cleaning up the contaminated sites as quickly as possible. The most significant contaminated sites are located to the north of Veracruz and south of Tabasco. These sites areas are close to refineries or locations of oil exploration. The primary category of contaminants are hydrocarbons, among them asphaltens, aromatic and other contaminants. The concentration of the contaminants varies depending on the location of the sites, but it can reach as high as 500,000 ppm. PEMEX has been searching for appropriate, and cost- effective technologies to clean up these sites. Biologically based remediation activities are of primary interest to PEMEX. However, other treatment technologies such as chemical-physical methods, encapsulation and incineration are also being considered. The present report summarizes preliminary experiments that measured the feasibility of bioremediation for a contaminated site in southern Mexico. Bibtex entry for this abstract Preferred format for this abstract (see Preferences)
Clean Biotechnology for Sustainable Farming
M. S. M. Saber *
National Research Centre, Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
email: M. S. M. Saber (msaber@yahoo.com)
*Correspondence to M. S. M. Saber, National Research Centre, Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
Keywords
Biotechnology; Environmental protection; Farming; Sustainable development
Abstract
Sustainability would never be achieved farewell as agricultural practices continue beyond the carrying capacity of the ecosystem through the exaggerated abuse of agricultural chemicals. The rapid growth of agricultural productivity in chemical farming systems is shrinking off. Moreover, environmental torrent from agricultural activities jeopardizes agricultural growth in several countries. Problems associated with the wealthy agricultural production in the developed world and underproduction in developing countries necessitate a widely accepted assessment of the present status of agriculture. It is time to install new farming systems committed to following environmental and sustainable approaches, and producing healthy food free from agrochemical residues. Ecologically oriented farming routines are being developed within the frame of the recent achievements in environmental biotechnology, the most important of which is the clean farming system which is increasingly acknowledged as a potential solution to copious problems overlaying present world agriculture. It is a farming system, which aims at evading the routine use of agricultural chemicals and reducing their rates of application. Clean farming systems directly give rise to four environmental biotechnologies, i.e., recycling of composted organic waste, fortifying the rhizosphere soil with biofertilizers, encouraging the use of biopesticides in agricultural practices and bioremediation of polluted agro-ecosystems.
Received: 9 December 2000
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
10.1002/1618-2863(200112)1:6<217::AID-ELSC217>3.0.CO;2-Y About DOI
Related Articles
* Find other articles like this in Wiley InterScience
* Find articles in Wiley InterScience written by any of the authors
THE ROLE OF MICROBES IN AGRICULTURE
http://www.swbic.org/education/workshops/microbes/biotech/microag.html
SWBIC Summer Workshop 1998
cotton pulling tractor
Agriculture is dependent on microbes to maintain a biological balance of the soil; thus, they are essential for the growth of crops. More than 1,000,000,000 microbes can be found in only 1 gram of soil. Of this number, there may be more than 10,000 different species.
Bacteria is the most numerous of the microbes. It breaks down organic matter and minerals into usable material for plants. Other types of microbes kill insects that are destructive to plants. For further information (including that reached by the above two links) go to the Microbe Zoo provided by CommTech Labs.
|Return to "Microbes in Biotechnology" page|
|Return to the SWBIC sponsored Conference, Symposium & Workshop page|
This page was authored by Judy Alexander and Elsie Couch during the 1998 SWBIC Summer Workshop on "The World of Microbes on the Internet"
The views, opinions and findings contained in the following pages are those of the SWBIC Summer Workshop participants and should not be construed as an official SWBIC position, policy, or decision. The citation of trade names and names of manufacturers should not be construed as official SWBIC endorsement or approval of the commercial services or products referenced.
The Southwest Biotechnology and Informatics Center WWW server is located at "http://www.swbic.org/".
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Last Updated: August 28, 1998
The California Orange Growers pr just shows that Bugs and it's subsidiary's offer a complete package of soil and water de-contamination. IMO it's only a matter of time before the news gets out. As word gets out, city water treatment facilities, agricultural companies, oil companies and other industry will start to take notice.
Bio-Con Microbes:
The Agriculture Company
Bio-Con Microbes, a subsidiary of U.S. Microbics, has developed sophisticated microbial formulations for specific agricultural applications to include agronomy, horticulture and turf management. These products are marketed under the trade name Bi-AgraTM.
For 25 years, the Bi-AgraTM 400 Series has been recognized as one of the premier agricultural supplements on the market. The product has been successfully used for increasing growth rates, reducing diseases, and creating substantial water savings in cotton, grapes, avocados, wheat, barley, rice, citrus fruit, strawberries, and numerous other agricultural products.
Agricultural Applications
Bio-Con predecessor companies enjoyed a long history of success in the specialty agricultural supplement industries, utilizing its cultured biological products containing various mixtures of organic and inorganic compounds, soil conditioners, and other products of biological fermentation. The cultured soil amendment product line enjoyed a loyal distributor-based following during the late 1960’s through the early 1980’s. Applications ranging from dramatic field crop performance (e.g. additional cuts from grain fields, improved soybean nitrogen fixation, and average yield increases on cotton crops) to legendary performance in the seed production and floral industries, and enhanced germination in soybeans, sorghum and sugar cane. Other key customer benefits of the agricultural products include a dramatic increase of seed germination and survival rates, less water and fertilizer usage, greener turf applications, fruit and vegetable harvests that can be picked sooner, have higher weights (42% larger strawberries, 100% larger melons, etc), and a lower mortality rate due to healthier plants.
As an additional benefit, the products are completely safe – they can not "burn" the crops, they are safe to handle, they can not overdose or kill most crops. As naturally occurring organisms they are safe to use in feed lots and carry a FDA approval for salmonella rating. They are not EPA controlled and are not genetically engineered and pose no harm to nature.
Agricultural Benefits
Fruits and Vegetables - increase in size and uniformity, exhibiting shorter growth cycles, lower water and fertilizer consumption.
Grapes - uniform crop and sugar content, less root rot and earlier harvest.
Avocados - reduced water consumption with the side benefit of reduced fungal problems.
Wheat, Barley, Oats, & Rice - extra harvest cut is a typical benefit.
Bi-AgraTM Product Line
Bi-AgraTM 400 Series has a unique blend of aerobic, facultative, and anaerobic bacteria and filamentous fungi (none genetically altered). The creator of the blend, George Robinson, experimented with thousands of strains of bacteria before isolating and identifying certain types of bacteria that when combined provide the best microbial agricultural supplement on the market today. Since U.S. Microbics ferments its own microbes and blends them into its proprietary formulations in-house, maximum product control is achieved. The biologically buffered system of Bi-AgraTM 400 Series gives it great flexibility in a wide range of soils, climates, and environmental conditions.
Process
Depending on the agricultural product, typically 4-60 gram Units of Bi-AgraTM 400 Series are applied per acre. The product can be mixed with water, agitated and activated, then introduced into the field through the field irrigation system. Applications are typically made twice per year. Care must be taken with regard to the amount of fertilizer used, as many times as much as 25% less fertilizer is necessary when using of Bi-AgraTM 400 Series.
Bi-AgraTM 400 Series creates the following in the treated soils:
* Very efficient fixation of atmospheric nitrogen.
* Conversion of nitrogen into amino acids.
* Rapid and efficient release of micro and macro nutrients from the soil and organic materials.
* Maintenance of very clean root system surfaces allowing high rates of moisture and nutrient absorption into the plant.
* Increased filamentous root area to facilitate nutrient uptake.
* Increased soil permeability rates and aids in aeration.
* As the biological activity in the soil increases, there is a slight elevation of temperature. This can serve to protect plants from the effect of cold weather. This can often be seen in shortened germination times or in cold-shock resistance.
* Increased biological production of C02 in the rhizosphere.
* Increased conversion of the organic material into humic acids.
Results
Bi-AgraTM 400 Series has been shown in controlled lab tests, as well as field applications, to increase growth rates by 20% to 80% depending on the product type. In addition, mortality rates and diseases have been controlled or eliminated by using Bi-AgraTM 400 Series.
Regulatory
Bi-AgraTM 400 Series is not considered a pesticide under the existing federal laws. Public Law 92516 is amended by Public Law 94-140 making a general classification of inoculants under "plant regulators". As of January 1, 1980, Bi-AgraTM 400 Series has been approved for sale and use in each of the U.S. States.
Final Note
An increasingly serious worldwide problem is the depletion of organic matter, or humus, in the soil used for growing plants. This has resulted in some soils having restricted aeration and reduced water-holding capacity. In turn, the number of beneficial microorganisms primarily responsible for the conversion of macronutrients, micronutrients and organic materials in the soil into more soluble forms that a plant can use, have been greatly reduced. The reduction of microorganisms and organic matter results in a further decrease in the nutrient storage capability of the soil, which decreases the amount of available nutrients to both plants and the microorganisms. This microbial and nutrient imbalance places undue biochemical and pathogenic stress on the plants and makes the more susceptible to disease and pests.
The problem is compounded by modern society's increased use of marginally suitable soils for growing plants. These soils are much more sensitive to microbial and biochemical imbalances and are depleted at much faster rates.
Initially, farmers and growers attempted to solve these problems by increasing the amount of available nutrients in the soil by increasing the amounts of fertilizer and water used on the depleted soils. More and more fungicides and pesticides became necessary to protect the "stressed" plants from disease and pests, thereby further damaging the micro-flora of the soil. Under these conditions the use of fungicides and pesticides only accelerated the decrease of the natural microorganisms necessary to healthy plant life.
Soil treatments that either stimulate or augment the existing microorganisms found in various soils have been employed as far back as the last century. However, this use consisted for the most part of one or two specific microorganisms or a "grab bag" mixture of soil cultures that were not specifically identified or quantified. Some were, and are, nothing more than composted manures carrying groups of microorganisms typically found in such waste.
BI-AGRA™ Product Line
Bi-Agra™ 400 Series Summary
Agriculture/Horticulture Series
Although chemical aids for enhancing growth and reducing pests have been a boon to horticulture and agriculture, they have also extracted a price-imbalance in soil microbiology, concentrations of pesticides and other toxins in the food chain, and severe economic and governmental problems related to irrigation run-off. Restoring soil balance is an important step in attaining the maximum crop yield and quality. Bi-Agra™ 400 Microbial Blends soil treatment creates a biologically buffered system and helps you do just that.
Benefits with Bi-Agra™ 400 Bio-Agricultural treatment program, you can expect:
* Enhanced foliage appearance
* Water conservation and related cost reduction
* Pumping cost reductions resulting from water reductions
* Reduced need for chemical fertilizers and related cost reductions
* Reclamation/Restoration of salt damaged soils
* Increase of filamentous root area to facilitate nutrient uptake
* Possible pesticide/ fungicide reductions currently under investigation with related cost savings
* The slight temperature increase cause by the biological activity in the soil may help protect the crops from cold weather damage, shorten germination time and provide cold-shock resistance
* Increased soil aeration capacity
* Enhanced fixation of atmospheric nitrogen
* Increased conversion of nitrogen into amino acids
* Faster and more efficient release of macro-nutrients in the soil and organic materials
* Increased biological production of CO2 in the rhizosphere
* Increased conversion of the organic materials into humic acids
* Maintenance of "super clean’ root system surfaces, allowing optimum moisture intake and enhanced nutrient absorption
* Reduction of elimination of "wetting" agent application and related cost savings
* Increased soil aeration capacity and enhanced soil "tilth"
Bio-Con Microbes supplies Bi-Agra™ 400 Bio-Agricultural treatment series in an easy-to-use non-toxic powder that comes in convenient 60 gram containers. Larger container sizes are available by special request.
It looks like we have support at .04 hoping for another green day. I think people are starting to accumulate now that support level has been established. Watchers will be left in the dust when we start getting contracts. IMO it is not a matter of if but just when these Mexico contracts will begin. Brehm stated in his conference call, last year was the assessment stage, now that the assessment has been done and submitted to the Governors and Pemex, this year is the remediation stage. This is were we get to work to clean up the toxic sites. IMO we are just waiting for final approval from Pemex on contracts that will fund the many projects.
FEMA Chief Says Contracts for Katrina Recovery Efforts Will Be Rebid to Prevent Waste, Abuse
Enlarge
Photo
Acting Federal Emergency Management Agency Director David Paulison testifies before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Capitol Hill Thursday, Oct. 6, 2005. The committee is studying disaster relief and response efforts following Hurricane Katrina. (AP Photo/Dennis Cook)
10-06-2005 11:46 AM
By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer
Listen to audio Listen to audio
WASHINGTON -- Millions of dollars in federal contracts for Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts that were handed out with little or no competition will be rebid to prevent any waste or abuse, FEMA chief R. David Paulison said Thursday.
"I've been a public servant for a long time, and I've never been a fan of no-bid contracts," Paulison told a Senate panel investigating the Federal Emergency Management Agency's response to the hurricane. "Sometimes you have to do them because of the expediency of getting things done. And I can assure that you we are going to look at all of those contracts very carefully."
"All of those no-bid contracts, we are going to go back and rebid," he said of pacts that were worth millions of dollars.
Paulison said after the hearing that he did not have a total figure for no-bid contracts that have been given, but said they include four agreements for $100 million each for housing and construction services awarded immediately after the storm hit. The government has been accused of overpaying for some contracts that were awarded with unusual haste in an effort to speed assistance to Katrina's victims.
In the weeks after the storm, more than 80 percent of at least $1.5 billion in FEMA contracts were awarded with little or no competition, or had open-ended or vague terms that previous audits have cited as being highly prone to abuse.
Inspector General Richard Skinner of the Department of Homeland Security told a House subcommittee that 90 percent of the contracts awarded for debris removal in Mississippi were not put out for competitive bids. He said the Army Corps of Engineers had four pre-existing contracts for debris removal, but those four could not handle the overwhelming devastation of the storm.
He said reviewing those no-bid contracts is "high on our priority list."
Skinner also said that investigators are not seeing the kinds of problems in Louisiana and Mississippi that FEMA was criticized for in responding to hurricanes that hit Florida last year, particularly providing aid to individuals in counties that had little or no damage.
Sen. Joe Lieberman, the top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, questioned whether FEMA should look at having contracts for services _ including housing and supplies _ already in place before a disaster strikes.
"It sure looks with hindsight that FEMA would have been in a much better position if it had had a lot of contracts in place that had been bid that were standby contracts to provide exactly the kind of services that FEMA rushed in to provide on a no-bid basis _ and which we fear the taxpayers may have ended up paying more money for than they should have," said Lieberman, D-Conn.
"Hopefully we can put things in place for the future where we won't have to depend on no-bid contracts for future use," Paulison said.
The FEMA chief was one of a bevy of Bush administration officials appearing before a half-dozen hearings to update Congress about the government's long- and short-term concerns in Katrina's aftermath. Housing assistance is a top priority as the administration grapples with finding homes for evacuated victims,
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, noted that hundreds of thousands of hurricane victims remain in hotel rooms and emergency shelters _ despite more than $2 billion already spent by FEMA for 120,000 temporary trailers and mobile homes. Only 109 Louisiana families have been put in those homes, while tens of thousands of state residents remain in shelters, she said.
"More than a month after Katrina's landfall, frustration, concerns and questions about FEMA's responsiveness and planning persist as Gulf Coast residents work to put their lives and communities back together," said Collins, who chaired the Senate hearing.
FEMA estimates that just over 68,200 refugees remain in shelters, down from a high of 300,000 after Katrina hit Aug. 29 and Hurricane Rita's Sept. 17 arrival.
Last month, FEMA launched a $2 billion program to pay three months of upfront rental costs for homeowners or renters whose residences were destroyed by Katrina. Eligible victims can receive $2,358 per family to rent anywhere in the country, and could continue to get assistance for up to 18 months as FEMA works with state and local authorities to rebuild the devastated communities.
So far, FEMA has spent $1.3 billion to help Katrina victims find homes, and 600,000 have registered for the rental program.
But victims still in shelters face an Oct. 15 deadline, set by President Bush, to find more stable housing _ including apartments, trailers and in some cases, hotels. Meanwhile, FEMA is weighing whether to extend a program that reimburses the American Red Cross for the cost of hotel rooms for victims.
That program is set to expire Oct. 24. The Red Cross has spent $112 million on hotel rooms for 464,560 people since Sept. 3, said spokeswoman Carrie Martin.
In another development, Treasury Secretary John Snow, describing the administration's plans to use tax incentives to rebuild the Gulf Coast economy, told senators the department opposes any proposal to have the credit of the federal government extended to state and local bonds.
"That would be a serious mistake," he said.
The leaders of the Senate Finance Committee told Snow to carry a message back to the White House that they're frustrated with the administration for fighting their effort to expand Medicaid health benefits for hurricane victims.
"Unfortunately, the White House is working against me behind the scenes, and I resent that considering how I've delivered for the White House so much over the last five years," said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa.
"It's six weeks now. Where is the administration?" asked Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, the panel's top Democrat. "It is slow-walking, it is opposing, it is obfuscating, it is delaying."
___
I sense we will get that pr soon. It looks like everyone has their eyes on gzfx today. The problem is they have a gazillion shares out there and not much shareholders equity. The stock should be worth .0009. Strictly a momo play. They would have to come up with a 3000% in subscribers to break even. I prefer to stay with bugs only 218 million shares.
Good morning, I think once we get news on Mexico contracts we will have more posters on this board, for now they are scattered on other boards. I liked the ceo interview and these facts.
The Mexico operations, under the guidance of Sub-Surface Waste Management continued to generate record-breaking revenues each quarter this fiscal year (up 82% in first 3 months, 129% in six months, and 334% in nine months compared to prior year).
SSWM is capitalizing on its patented technologies registered in Mexico with SEMARNAT, a Federal regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance nationwide.
In the interview his last words were more good news coming soon.
Just home for lunch, Yeah I saw that, I replied that who ever did that can get into a lot of trouble. If they are trying that hard, they have a motive to buy your shares cheap, they are either short or long but why would they do these things to bash a stock. If I had no interest I would just go on to a different stock.
Has anyone heard the interview with Bruce Beattie. I have and if you llsten to it, you will have a much better picture about where we are at and where we are going. The last sentance of the interview is we will receive more good news shortly.
COMPANY NEWS AND PRESS RELEASES FROM OTHER SOURCES:
US Financial Network: CEO of Sub Surface Waste Management provide significant progress report and update at SmallCapVoice.com
Austin, TX, Oct 05, 2005 (M2 PRESSWIRE via COMTEX) -- Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc. (OTCBB SSWM) announced that the Company's CEO, Bruce Beattie is featured in an interview by SmallCapVoice.com. The interview covers all of the latest news for SSWM and features management's personal insights into the company's recently released financial figures and progress in Mexico The Web cast is available online at http://www.smallcapvoice.com/sswm/index.html The Mexico operations, under the guidance of Sub-Surface Waste Management continued to generate record-breaking revenues each quarter this fiscal year (up 82% in first 3 months, 129% in six months, and 334% in nine months compared to prior year).
About Sub-Surface Waste Management Sub-Surface Waste Management Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of U.S. Microbics, Inc. (BUGS - news) and provides comprehensive civil and environmental engineering project management services including specialists to design, permit, build and operate environmental waste clean-up treatment systems using conventional, biological and filtration technologies. SSWM is capitalizing on its patented technologies registered in Mexico with SEMARNAT, a Federal regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance nationwide.
The information contained in this press release includes forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements usually contain the words "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "expect," or similar expressions that involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the Company's status as a startup company with uncertain profitability, need for significant capital, uncertainty concerning market acceptance of its products, competition, limited service and manufacturing facilities, dependence on technological developments and protection of its intellectual property. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed herein. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences are discussed more fully in the "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis or Plan of Operation" and other sections of the Company's Form 10-KSB and other publicly available information regarding the Company on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company will provide you with copies of this information upon request.
CONTACT: Alan Kau, Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware Inc Tel: +1 888 795 3166 WWW: http://www.bugsatwork.com
M2 Communications Ltd disclaims all liability for information provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data supplied by named party/parties. Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to info@m2.com.
It looks like Brehm just bought $74,223.36 in company stock. What does he know that we don't? Yet!!
BREHM ROBERT C files Form 4, Statement of Changes in Beneficial Ownership of US MICROBICS INC
FORM 4
[ ] Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16. Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instruction 1(b).
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF SECURITIES
OMB APPROVAL
OMB Number: 3235-0287
Expires: January 31, 2008
Estimated average burden
hours per response... 0.5
Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Section 17(a) of the Public
Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 or Section 30(f) of the Investment Company Act of 1940
1. Name and Address of Reporting Person *
BREHM ROBERT C 2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
US MICROBICS INC [ BUGS ] 5. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer (Check all applicable)
__ X __ Director _____ 10% Owner
__ X __ Officer (give title below) _____ Other (specify below)
CEO
(Last) (First) (Middle)
6965 EL CAMINO ROAD # 105279 3. Date of Earliest Transaction (MM/DD/YYYY)
9/30/2005
(Street)
CARLSBAD, CA 92009
(City) (State) (Zip)
4. If Amendment, Date Original Filed (MM/DD/YYYY)
6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)
_ X _ Form filed by One Reporting Person
___ Form filed by More than One Reporting Person
Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned
1.Title of Security
(Instr. 3) 2. Trans. Date 2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any 3. Trans. Code
(Instr. 8) 4. Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D)
(Instr. 3, 4 and 5) 5. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s)
(Instr. 3 and 4) 6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4) 7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
Code V Amount (A) or (D) Price
Restricted Common Stock 9/30/2005 9/1/2005 P 8247041 A $0.009 18441130 D
Table II - Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned ( e.g. , puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivate Security
(Instr. 3) 2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security 3. Trans. Date 3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any 4. Trans. Code
(Instr. 8) 5. Number of Derivative Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D)
(Instr. 3, 4 and 5) 6. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date 7. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security
(Instr. 3 and 4) 8. Price of Derivative Security
(Instr. 5) 9. Number of derivative Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 4) 10. Ownership Form of Derivative Security: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4) 11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
Code V (A) (D) Date Exercisable Expiration Date Title Amount or Number of Shares
Explanation of Responses:
Reporting Owners
Reporting Owner Name / Address
Relationships
Director 10% Owner Officer Other
BREHM ROBERT C
6965 EL CAMINO ROAD # 105279
CARLSBAD, CA 92009 X
CEO
Signatures
/s/ Robert C Brehm 10/4/2005
** Signature of Reporting Person Date
Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 4(b)(v).
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations. See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
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http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/press/releases/Katrina_oil_slick_satellite_imagery
Oil Slicks Sighted in Gulf of Mexico in the Wake of Hurricane Katrina
Satellite Imagery Shows Potentially Large Oil Spills
September 14, 2005
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Satellite imagery of oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The white dots indicate oil rigs/platforms. The dark streaks indicate oil slicks. The nature of the large dark spot on the lower right-hand side is unknown.
Satellite imagery of oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The white dots indicate oil rigs/platforms. The dark streaks indicate oil slicks. The nature of the large dark spot on the lower right-hand side is unknown.
Enlarge Image More Photos
Washington, D.C., UNITED STATES — Newly released satellite image maps taken since Hurricane Katrina show oil slicks in the Gulf of Mexico. The images, which were made public today by Greenpeace and satellite imagery experts at SkyTruth.org, indicate that oil spills are coming from multiple sources, including spills originating from known oil platform locations. Some of these slicks are just a few miles offshore.
“These images appear to illustrate a substantial and ongoing problem that has not yet been addressed,” said John Coequyt, Greenpeace’s Energy Policy Specialist. “The energy industry has been silent on the condition of its offshore oil rigs, platforms and pipelines, focussing instead on oil supply and capitalizing on the national tragedy of Hurricane Katrina to push for expanded oil and gas drilling.”
On September 6, Rebecca Watson, Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management at the Department of Interior stated, “We are pleased that in the aftermath of Katrina, there have been no reported significant oil spills from production," in testimony before the House Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
In light of the satellite imagery, Greenpeace is calling on the U.S. Coast Guard, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Interior, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to assess these oil slicks and to make public its plans for stopping any leaks and for cleaning up the spills.
Last week, more than 100 companies sent a letter to Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert and other Republican leaders, asking Congress to open up coastal areas in other parts of the country for offshore oil and gas exploration.
“These images highlight yet again the need to promote clean energy solutions such as renewable energy and energy efficiency,” said Coequyt. “If oil companies won’t take responsibility for their current environmental problems, why should the United States open up the coasts of California, Florida or North Carolina to this dirty industry?”
I think we should hear something soon about contracts with Mexico.
With recent announcements of PEMEX funding for environmental cleanup and emergency response opportunities in various states, SSWM is on the verge of major expansion potential that should be of interest to anyone concerned about clean air, water and soil and related investment opportunities."
http://www.pinksheets.com/quote/news.jsp?url=fis_story.asp%3Ftextpath%3DCOMTEX%5Cbw%5C2005%5C10%5C04...
COMPANY NEWS AND PRESS RELEASES FROM OTHER SOURCES:
SSWM Presentation Well Received at Investment Conference
CARLSBAD, Calif., Oct 04, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Robert Brehm, CEO of U.S. Microbics, Inc. (OTCBB:BUGS) (BCN:615212), an innovative environmental products and services company, announced that the presentation by Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc. (OTCBB:SSWM), at the Southern California Investment Association's National Investment Conference in Irvine, CA on October 1, was received very well by a large audience of qualified venture capitalists, NASD broker/dealers, investment and merchant bankers, investment advisors, analysts, market makers, fund managers, financial service professionals, and business development consultants looking for emerging growth companies with exciting futures.
Brehm commented on the excellent response by saying, "We used this presentation opportunity to showcase SSWM and the incredible opportunities we have to help the people of Mexico solve many of their pressing environmental concerns using our patented bio-nanotechnology and precision engineering services coupled with local labor and equipment resources. With recent announcements of PEMEX funding for environmental cleanup and emergency response opportunities in various states, SSWM is on the verge of major expansion potential that should be of interest to anyone concerned about clean air, water and soil and related investment opportunities."
Brehm further elicited, "Our message was to get the audience excited about our future and the social and financial rewards available with their help as we clean up the world's messes. Based upon the interest and many new business contacts made I believe our message was well received and we will consummate additional resources to accelerate our growth progress." The SSWM presentation slides are available at www.bugsatwork.com/news.htm.
About Sub-Surface Waste Management
Sub-Surface Waste Management Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of U.S. Microbics, Inc. (OTCBB:BUGS) and provides comprehensive civil and environmental engineering project management services including specialists to design, permit, build and operate environmental waste clean-up treatment systems using conventional, biological and filtration technologies. SSWM is capitalizing on its patented technologies registered in Mexico with SEMARNAT, a Federal regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance nationwide.
The information contained in this press release includes forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements usually contain the words "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "expect," or similar expressions that involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the Company's status as a startup company with uncertain profitability, need for significant capital, uncertainty concerning market acceptance of its products, competition, limited service and manufacturing facilities, dependence on technological developments and protection of its intellectual property. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed herein. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences are discussed more fully in the "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis or Plan of Operation" and other sections of the Company's Form 10-KSB and other publicly available information regarding the Company on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company will provide you with copies of this information upon request.
SOURCE: Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc.
CONTACT: Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc.
Alan Kau, 888-795-3166
http://www.bugsatwork.com
Copyright Business Wire 2005
It looks like the mm's are trying to bring it down below .04. Maybe it will dip and then turn back up. Some people that bought last week at .03 are taking their 25% profit. I think the volume speaks for itself, the executives are definatly not selling, just a few small sells. I spoke too soon, here we go green!!
Just got up, checking the news and message boards. It looks like we should have a green day here. I sent an email to Ricardo Lorden at Enviornmental Tec International yesterday asking for progress update on the September 19th meeting and any information on the progress down there. Hope he writes back soon.
If these buys were stock options it would be listed as so in the form 4. I think it is part of a compensation package that was previously agreed to or part of a stock purchase plan. In any event, It does not look like they will be selling any time soon. Why would they. It think it is a good indication that good is brewing in Mexico!
Good luck, Go Bugs
JC
Nice day, I agree, Nagel and Beattie bought 30k worth of stock that is a good indication that something is brewing. Maybe it was part of a compensation package or stock purchase program but I don't expect they will be selling any time soon. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.
JC
BUGS -- U.S. Microbics
Com ($0.0001)
COMPANY NEWS AND PRESS RELEASES FROM OTHER SOURCES:
BEATTIE BRUCE S files Form 4, Statement of Changes in Beneficial Ownership of US MICROBICS INC
FORM 4
[ ] Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16. Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instruction 1(b).
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF SECURITIES
OMB APPROVAL
OMB Number: 3235-0287
Expires: January 31, 2008
Estimated average burden
hours per response... 0.5
Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Section 17(a) of the Public
Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 or Section 30(f) of the Investment Company Act of 1940
1. Name and Address of Reporting Person *
BEATTIE BRUCE S 2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
US MICROBICS INC [ bugs ] 5. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer (Check all applicable)
_____ Director _____ 10% Owner
__ X __ Officer (give title below) _____ Other (specify below)
CEO of subsidary company
(Last) (First) (Middle)
24843 DEL PRADO 305 3. Date of Earliest Transaction (MM/DD/YYYY)
9/30/2005
(Street)
DANA POINT, CA 92629
(City) (State) (Zip)
4. If Amendment, Date Original Filed (MM/DD/YYYY)
6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)
_ X _ Form filed by One Reporting Person
___ Form filed by More than One Reporting Person
Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned
1.Title of Security
(Instr. 3) 2. Trans. Date 2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any 3. Trans. Code
(Instr. 8) 4. Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D)
(Instr. 3, 4 and 5) 5. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s)
(Instr. 3 and 4) 6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4) 7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
Code V Amount (A) or (D) Price
common stock 9/30/2005 9/30/2005 P 1172729 A $0.009 1472729 D
Table II - Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned ( e.g. , puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivate Security
(Instr. 3) 2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security 3. Trans. Date 3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any 4. Trans. Code
(Instr. 8) 5. Number of Derivative Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D)
(Instr. 3, 4 and 5) 6. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date 7. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security
(Instr. 3 and 4) 8. Price of Derivative Security
(Instr. 5) 9. Number of derivative Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 4) 10. Ownership Form of Derivative Security: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4) 11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
Code V (A) (D) Date Exercisable Expiration Date Title Amount or Number of Shares
Explanation of Responses:
Reporting Owners
Reporting Owner Name / Address
Relationships
Director 10% Owner Officer Other
BEATTIE BRUCE S
24843 DEL PRADO 305
DANA POINT, CA 92629
CEO of subsidary company
Signatures
Bruce S. Beattie 10/2/2005
** Signature of Reporting Person Date
Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 4(b)(v).
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations. See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
Note: File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.
Persons who respond to the collection of information contained in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently valid OMB control number.
End of News Created by: EDGAR Online Pro
© 2005, EDGAR Online, Inc. All rights reserved. Replication or redistribution of EDGAR Online, Inc. content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of EDGAR Online, Inc. EDGAR Online, Inc. shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.
http://www.accessexcellence.org/RC/AB/BA/Cleaning_Up_Wastes.html
Cleaning Up Wastes
Excerpted from BIO. "Protecting Our Environment" Washington, D.C.: Biotechnology Industry Organization, 1992.
The use of biotechnology to solve environmental problems, according to William K. Reilly, former head of the Environmental Protection Agency, "could be - should be - an environmental breakthrough of staggering positive dimensions."
Everything under the sun degrades, or breaks down, into different materials. Fallen leaves become compost, iron rusts, milk turns sour, and food 'goes bad.' Just as light, heat, and moisture can degrade many materials, biotechnology relies on naturally occurring, living bacteria to perform a similar function. Some bacteria naturally 'feed' on chemicals and other wastes, including some hazardous materials. They consume those materials, digest them, and excrete harmless substances in their place.
For decades now, municipalities have used biological methods to treat their sewage, and industry has used secondary aerobic treatment to remove harmful materials from liquid wastes. Biological treatment is not a new idea. What is new is the expanded range of biotreatment capabilities offered by the science of biotechnology.
Bioremediation uses natural as well as recombinant microorganisms to break down toxic and hazardous substances already present in the environment. Biotreatment is a broader term, which refers to all biological treatment processes, including bioremediation. Biotreatment can be used to detoxify process waste streams at the source - before they contaminate the environment - rather than at the point of disposal. This approach involves carefully selecting organisms, known as biocatalysts, which are enzymes that degrade specific compounds, and define the conditions that accelerate the degradation process.
Living Off a Landfill
Vast numbers of bacteria exist naturally in the prevailing conditions in landfills and other solid waste sites. Some of those bacteria consume, or degrade, different types of waste present at the site. But they do it slowly.
Scientists today can examine a landfill and determine not only what bacteria are degrading which materials in it - including any hazardous materials - but which do it fastest, most completely, and under what optimum conditions.
Armed with this knowledge, they can clone the most efficient strains of naturally occurring bacteria, reproduce them in quantity, and apply them to the site. In effect, they can create a customized army of waste eaters.
Oil for Dinner
Some bacteria literally 'live on oil,' just as some people live on meat and potatoes. And they consume it with just as much relish.
Following the major oil spill in Alaska's Prince William Sound, the Environmental Protection Agency brought in natural oil-eating bacteria to help clean up the mess. Follow-up studies suggest that the microbes did as good a job in cleaning up soiled beaches as high-pressure hoses and detergents could have done. "It was almost as if we had brought in fresh rock," stated the EPA's project manager after visiting the site.
Such bioremediation cannot only help to clean up oil spills, but also chlorinated chemicals and leaks from storage tanks.
Custom-Made Microbes
Using naturally occurring bacteria for environmental purposes is a relatively simple procedure of identification, cloning, and mass production.
Biotechnologists using recombinant DNA technology - the principal tool of genetic engineering - can recombine, or mix-and-match, the most desirable traits of several bacterial species. They can, for instance, extract the gene from one strain that allows it to 'feed' on PCBs or other hazardous wastes, then take the genes that allow another bacterial strain to withstand wide temperature ranges - lack of oxygen or other environmental extremes - and transplant them into a common, harmless bacterium that can be mass produced easily. The result is an organism custom-made to 'eat up' a specific problem waste at a specific site under specific conditions.
This technology holds the potential to solve many environmental problems from the past, and leave our children an environment cleaner than we inherited from our parents.
Pollution Prevention
Of equal, or perhaps even greater importance, biotechnology can eliminate hazardous pollutants at their source before they enter the environment. Every year, some 5 billion pounds of 320 potentially harmful chemicals are released into the environment. The EPA has targeted 17 of those chemicals for massive reductions. Biotreatment with naturally occurring biocatalysts has been demonstrated to almost completely eliminate one of these chemicals, methylene chloride, a suspected carcinogen, from industrial process streams. About 130 million pounds of this compound are currently discharged each year in manufacturing process wastes.
Special bacteria in a bioreactor can virtually eliminate methylene chloride from industrial waste water. They reduce concentrations from over 1,000,000 parts per billion to less than 5 parts per billion - far below the EPA's permissible guidelines. The bacteria in the bioreactor consume the chemical and convert it to water, carbon dioxide, and salt. They permanently destroy the hazardous material and eliminate any need to recover it, transfer it, or dispose of it.
http://www.cals.wisc.edu/media/news/00_sci-rept/microbes/
Wanted: Bugs That Scrub
Harnessing bacteria for environmental cleanup
This sample of groundwater from contaminated soil could yield bacteria that can degrade persistent soil pollutants.
The United States is investing billions of dollars to clean up polluted groundwater and soils. In Wisconsin alone, the Department of Natural Resources has a list of nearly 10,000 sites that need to be cleaned up. In 1998, contaminants turned up in well water samples from Beloit to Rhinelander. Some communities removed individual wells from service because water from those wells contained pollutants considered unsafe for drinking.
The most common soil and groundwater pollutants include fuels such as gasoline and oil, industrial compounds such as TCE (trichloroethylene) and PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and pesticides. Many of the compounds are threats to human health. Exposure to benzene or TCE, for example, is known to increase the risk of cancer.
What's wrong with the "pump and treat" approach?
Efforts to clean up these toxins have cost far more than anticipated and the results have been discouraging. Conventional methods bring contaminated soil and water to the surface before treating it. Such "pump-and-treat" methods may continue for decades at a polluted site and basically transfer the contaminants to the air or to landfills.
As the limitations of these methods become clearer, experts have become more interested in biological remediation. Bioremediation relies on microbes to destroy hazardous contaminants in place by transforming them into less harmful compounds. The transformation occurs naturally at contaminated sites and has controlled the spread of some pollution without pump-and-treat methods. Those who advocate an expanded role for bioremediation say it will be less costly, faster and safer than pump-and-treat methods, and can be combined with them.
Bacteria: Doing what comes naturally
Bacteria are the key players in bioremediation, which builds on the role they have played in nature for billions of years. These microscopic organisms live virtually everywhere. They break down complex plant, animal and human waste. Bacteria chew up any compound that provides the energy or nutrients they need, even if it's a relatively new compound to them.
Looking for contaminant-eating bacteria that can exist without oxygen.
Graduate student Michele Zwolinski uses an oxygen-free chamber to work with samples from the Fort McCoy site. She is trying to isolate bacteria that can degrade groundwater contaminants in the absence of oxygen.
"Wherever contaminants are present there's strong selection for bacteria that can get some energy from the compounds," says biochemist Brian Fox. "The pollutants that accumulate in the environment are those that aren't a food source for bacteria or that produce toxins when bacteria metabolize them. Or maybe some bacteria can degrade these compounds, but just do it very slowly.
"If such bacteria do exist, perhaps we can improve their ability," Fox says. "What we're trying to do is to speed the process of breakdown."
Fox is one of three CALS scientists trying to harness the power of bacteria to enhance the cleanup of environmental pollution. He studies a bacterial enzyme that can break down some of our most troublesome groundwater contaminants -- benzene, dichloromethane, trichloroethylene and similar pollutants.
To learn how the enzyme works, Fox has been making changes in the gene that produces it. The genetic changes alter the enzyme's structure. Fox can then see how the alteration affects its ability to degrade different compounds.
Bioremediation has become a fast-growing sector of the hazardous waste cleanup industry. Fox collaborates with scientists at Envirogen, Inc., a New Jersey-based company, that is evaluating the altered enzymes Fox produces to see if they can attack contaminants.
Bacteria face off with a gas spill
Soil scientist Bill Hickey is examining what happens in a diverse microbial community when bacteria there come face to face with a gasoline spill. Hickey and hydrogeologist Jean Bahr, from the College of Letters and Science, are studying a fuel spill at Fort McCoy, near Sparta. Bahr is documenting how the plume of contaminated water moves. Hickey, a soil microbiologist, is isolating bacteria that degrade hydrocarbons in groundwater that has no oxygen.
Hickey has studied ground contaminated by leaking fuel tanks and was the first to show that bacteria could degrade TCE in water year-round under Wisconsin conditions if he supplied the bugs with ammonium as a nitrogen source. Now he's looking for bacteria that can degrade benzene. Benzene is a relatively minor component of gasoline, but it's the most toxic component to people and one that bacteria degrade slowly.
"Hydrocarbons are a rich carbon source and bacteria immediately attack them when hydrocarbons enter groundwater," Hickey says. "The intense bacterial activity rapidly uses up what little oxygen was present in the groundwater. When oxygen disappears from groundwater many bacteria can no longer survive there, and that slows down the cleanup."
Wanted: Microbes that exist where oxygen doesn't
Hickey wants to identify bacteria that degrade benzene and closely related compounds in the absence of oxygen. In the laboratory, he is testing the microbial community from uncontaminated groundwater at Fort McCoy to see how that community changes when he adds hydrocarbons. He has found a major shift in the bacteria present when he adds benzene. Hickey has already isolated bacteria that can degrade hydrocarbons similar to benzene in water devoid of oxygen. Now he hopes to find species that can degrade benzene itself.
Microbial physiologist Glenn Chambliss and his colleagues have identified two bacteria and the enzymes that enable them to degrade nitroglycerin and TNT.
"This is the first time anyone has purified and characterized enzymes that can take the initial step in breaking down TNT," says Chambliss, who chairs the Department of Bacteriology.
The findings may lead to biologically based methods for cleaning up soils contaminated with toxic residues left from manufacturing explosives, according to Chambliss. There are an estimated 10,000 U.S. sites contaminated with explosives and related compounds. The materials include: TNT (trinitrotoluene), DNT (dinitrotoluene), nitroglycerin, and nitrocellulose, also known as smokeless gunpowder. TNT and DNT are particularly toxic and break down very slowly.
Wanted: Bacteria that eat dynamite
To find bacteria that could "eat" dynamite, Chambliss and his colleagues collected bacteria from sites once contaminated with nitroglycerin at the Badger Army Ammunition Plant near Baraboo. The plant was once the world's largest producer of smokeless gun powder, a propellant used to fire artillery shells.
The researchers identified several bacteria that could survive at high nitroglycerin concentrations and degrade the compound. They have sequenced the genes that code for different enzymes from two species. One enzyme is five times as efficient as the other at degrading TNT. The more efficient enzyme can follow two different pathways in degrading TNT, according to Chambliss. "One leads to toxic components that don't decay further. The other pathway leads to a partial but more complete breakdown without toxic compounds."
Chambliss is now experimenting to see if he can engineer the enzyme so it only works via the preferred pathway. He, Brian Fox and environmental engineer Dan Noguera from the College of Engineering are also looking for other bacteria and enzymes that will complete the cleanup.
Cleaning up pollutants can be like running an assembly line in reverse. You start with a complex molecule and the bacteria break it apart, eventually reducing it to water and carbon dioxide.
It takes bacterial teamwork
"Bacteria like those that work on TNT often move the degradation process only a certain distance before producing a compound they can no longer benefit from or that is too toxic to keep around," says Fox. "They put that compound back into the environment where other bacteria will hopefully degrade it further. The chain may take several steps before it produces harmless compounds."
Chambliss and Fox hope to find what Fox sometimes calls the "missing link," one bacterium or several that will take the partly degraded TNT molecule and reduce it to compounds that known bacteria can fully degrade to carbon dioxide and water.
You can try to create these bugs or look for them in nature, Fox says. If bacteria can break down a compound, he feels certain that researchers have the best chance of finding those bacteria in nature. "Nature is the greatest experimenter of them all. Nature's experiments go on 24 hours a day, 365 days a year," he says.
From lab tests to commercial applications: A long leap
"It's a major leap from academic research to companies implementing these findings," says Hickey. But the three College scientists know the contaminants are likely to be a problem for a long time to come.
"The bugs have the potential to address these contamination problems," Chambliss says. "But we're still at an early stage in understanding the processes involved. It took us a long time and a great deal of research to develop an industry around the antibiotics that bacteria produce. It's going to take more research before we get bacteria that can solve some of these environ- mental problems."
George Gallepp
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It looks like it will be a good day for bugs, sswm is moving too!
IMO someting is brewing!!!!!!!
Well ! heres one for the old gipper, I mean gapper. Go Bugs!!!!
http://www.sbsun.com/Stories/0,1413,208~12588~2996645,00.html
Good bugs' cleaning up water tainted with MTBE
Microscopic critters gobble gunk from millions of gallons or else
By Kerry Cavanaugh, Staff Writer
NORTH HOLLYWOOD -- To clean up a massive plume of MTBE in Los Angeles' drinking water supply, scientists have produced trillions of tiny "bugs" that feed on the toxic gasoline additive and leave the water pure enough to return to the aquifer.
The project is the first of its kind in Los Angeles, and officials rave that the superefficient microbes will restore millions of gallons of precious San Fernando Valley groundwater, which provides 10 percent of the city's drinking supply.
"This is exciting because we're saving the water, and water is precious in the region," said Yue Rong, a senior environmental scientist with the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board.
Scientists expect MTBE-gobbling bacteria will become a cheaper, safer way to clean up groundwater contamination.
MTBE -- methyl tertiary butyl ether -- was added to gasoline beginning in 1979 to cut air pollution. Extremely water-soluble, MTBE tainted water supplies with its distinct turpentine taste and odor when underground gasoline storage tanks leaked into groundwater.
An estimated 2,300 water systems in 36 states have been contaminated by MTBE, according to a June report from the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies. California stopped using the chemical in 2004.
In North Hollywood, the former Fast Fuel Service Station at Victory and Vineland boulevards leaked thousands of gallons of gasoline into the groundwater before going out of business, leaving oil company Tesoro with the cleanup.
Tesoro found a thick layer of gasoline floating on the groundwater and MTBE levels up to 100,000 parts per billion. The acceptable limit for drinking is 5 ppb.
More troubling, the massive plume of MTBE was migrating toward Los Angeles Department of Water and Power wells. The utility shut down two of the wells for fear of pulling the chemical even closer.
The contamination was so severe that Tesoro probably would have had to buy property in the residential neighborhood and build a water-treatment plant if a better cleanup method had not been found, said Jeffrey Baker, environmental remediation supervisor for Tesoro.
Instead, Baker and the company's consultant, Haley & Aldrich, sought the help of Kate Scow, a soil-science professor at the University of California, Davis, and graduate student Kristin Hicks. Scientists in their lab had discovered a microbes strain called PM1 that feeds on MTBE, destroying the molecule and leaving carbon dioxide behind.
PM1 is found naturally in the groundwater. To accelerate the bug's natural hunger for MTBE, experts cultivate the bacteria inside carbon filters -- similar to the filters found in household water purifiers -- and add oxygen. The bacteria multiply and quickly chomp through MTBE.
"This is an efficient organism that breaks it down to natural elements and creates no byproducts," Baker said.
Tesoro has been using bacteria to remove MTBE in North Hollywood for two years, piping tainted water to two small units at a self-storage facility on Victory Boulevard, where the water runs through several chambers that house the carbon filters and bacteria.
After several trips through the filters, the MTBE is below the detection level of 0.5 ppb.
Until recently, Tesoro released the clean water into the storm-drain system and it eventually washed out to the ocean -- a waste of 7 million gallons of water that frustrated local officials.
Just this week, however, Tesoro flipped the switch on the second phase that reinjects the treated water into the aquifer. It's the first time Los Angeles water officials have allowed someone to put treated water back into the San Fernando Valley aquifer.
"We had to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was safe," Baker said.
The new process will save 10 million gallons of water, or enough to serve 60 families for a year.
Now that the scientists have shown that tiny bugs can do the work of high-tech water-treatment devices, Scow hopes other companies will embrace a cheaper, less-destructive and more natural way to clean up contamination.
"This work is an excellent example of how working with nature, supporting the cleanup activities of organisms already present, rather than creating artificial systems, was successful." l8s=8 Kerry Cavanaugh, (818) 713-3746 kerry.cavanaugh@dailynews.com
I think the pps is on its way back up to where we should be based on the potential revenues. Just how much of the clean up will be given to bugs? That is the 64 million dollar question.
Pemex Wants $9 Billion to Fix Pipes, Oil Spills Continue
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MEXICO: February 1, 2005
MEXICO CITY - Mexican state oil monopoly Pemex Monday confirmed an oil spill in Veracruz state -- it's fifth spill of oil or fuel in four months -- as energy authorities said $9 billion was needed to fix the country's old and rusting pipeline network.
Pemex said the Jan 26. crude oil spill occurred near the town of Hueyapan de Ocampo, Veracruz.
A Pemex spokeswoman in the nearby Gulf of Mexico port of Coatzacoalcos told Reuters around 45,000 liters (283 barrels) of oil had seeped into the subsoil from a faulty pipeline.
She said the leak was caused by corrosion.
Local media have quoted Veracruz Governor Fidel Herrera as saying the spill could pollute underground water sources.
A joint statement by Pemex, Mexico's energy and environment ministries, and environmental watchdog Profepa said Pemex needed to invest 100 billion pesos ($9 billion) over the 2006-2008 period for a huge backlog in repairs to 36,738 kilometers (22,961 mile) of aging pipeline.
The recent spate of spills has thrust attention onto the state of pipes pumping oil, gasoline, natural gas and chemicals around the Gulf of Mexico states of Veracruz, Tabasco and Campeche, where the oil industry is centered.
Pemex chief Luis Ramirez is due to appear before Congress later Monday to discuss the situation.
Mexico's IMP oil research institute estimates that half of Mexico's pipelines are more than 30 years old and corroded.
While Pemex has cleaned up the worst of the spills and trucked bottled water into contaminated areas, residents and fishermen were still suffering the aftermath, illustrated by photos in the local media of dead fish and oil-stained earth.
Pemex, which pays taxes worth 61 percent of its revenue, has complained for years that it cannot operate properly with the budget Congress gives it. Last week Pemex said pipeline repairs would cost $3 billion over six years.
Mexico is the world's No. 9 oil exporter, selling much of its 1.95 million barrels per day to the United States.
A reform to ease Pemex's tax burden by trimming royalties on oil produced from new oilfields has been held up in Congress by opposition Senators wary of any changes to Pemex's statute.
The company is spending the bulk of its $11 billion investment budget this year on exploration and production, its main focus based on concerns that output from its largest oilfield will start declining from 2006.
Pemex officials at a spill of toxic naphtha fuel a week ago near the town of Agua Dulce, Veracruz, told Reuters over the past weekend that the company needs to extend a computerized leak alert system to its entire pipeline network.
Story by Catherine Bremer
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
I'm running out of free posts for today. So I will give everyone something to speculate on. I has been posted in an article that the Mexico clean up will cost about 9 billion dollars over a period of I think was 10 years. My guess is that if we even just get 10% of that business. It would mean 1 billion in contracts over 10 years.
My prediction is we are worth over 10 cents per share now and after the Mexico Pemex contracts are signed, .15 to .25 depending on the size of the contracts. What are your predictions?
JC
Duh ! I got my answer on share structure right on this website.
Shares Outstanding: 218,946,646 (As of 8/19/2005 SEC Form 10QSB)
Shares Authorized: 500,000,000
Thanks anyway
JC
Request. Can someone tell me exactly what the share structure of the company is? Pink sheets has 86,372,575 outstanding as of 3/31/2003. They also show a decrease of 1 for 20 split as of 8/20/97. Does anyone have this info or can anybody tell me where to go to find updated accurate information.