Sediment-Based Intrinsic Bioremediation of a Contaminated Wetland Environment

Freshwater wetlands are among the most important ecosystems on Earth. Saturated soils, standing water, and diverse biological species are characteristic components of wetland ecosystems and describe an ecosystem capable of complex interactions between the soil and sediment organic carbon and the overlying water. Such interactions include oxygen diffusion into the sediment, adsorption of solutes onto the sediment, and carbon utilization by sediment microbes. Freshwater wetlands serve as a sink for complex organics consisting of cellulose, lignin and chitin which require hydrolysis and degradation to a labile carbon for utilization by bacteria. Detrital material such as nucleic acids, proteins, amino acids and lipids are nutrient sources from lysed cells, decaying organisms in sediment habitats, or by-products from biotic metabolisms. With high microbial populations, compared to terrestrial environments, wetland soils are highly effective at consuming and processing labile, detrital litter. Such utilization of background organic matter has encouraged close evaluations of wetland systems and their applicability to reduce and utilize organic xenobiotic compounds released into the environment.