CONGRESO ACADÉMICO

Conferencista: Valentine Nzengung

Título: Green and Sustainable
Remediation of Oil Spills in Sensitive
Amazon Ecosystem
Green and Sustainable Remediation of Oil
Spills in Sensitive Amazon Ecosystem

Presented at

Cumbre Internacional de Medio Ambiente (CIMA)

Capitulo Ecuador 2011. Guayaquil, Ecuador

By
Professor Valentine Nzengung, PhD
President & CEO
 PLANTECO’s Green Technologies
PLANTECO Uses Green Plants, Natural
Occurring Bacteria and Agricultural
Waste products to Cleanup Soils,
Sediment and Water.
Environmental Monitoring

PLANT Based Remediation use energy

from the sun = Phytoremediation
Technologies
¾ Tree plantations
¾ Constructed Wetlands, including
floating wetlands
¾ Riparian Buffers along streams,
rivers and coastline Phytoremediation of
Groundwater
¾ Vegetation caps for landfills and
mine sites
Phytoremediation of Soil and Water
¾ When everything else
fails, nature often
provides the solution.

¾ Plants and bacteria

working together cleanup
toxic chemicals from our
air, water and soils.

¾ Scientists worldwide are

successfully using plants
to cost-effectively cleanup
contaminated water, soil,
sediment and air
Phytoremediation technology installed by PLANTECO to
cleanup an Oil Spill and protect drinking water

Professor Nzengung inspecting the Phytoremediation system for an oil

pipeline spill
Low-Cost Passive Treatment of Surface Water
Applications: Eastuaries, Lakes, Ponds
Largest application (15 acres) at Grand Lake St. Mary’s in Ohio
Anchored Floating Constructed Treatment Wetland

Solar panel

Native Wetland Plants

Solar
Flotation Pontoon Powered Guy Line
Compressor
for Floating Support Structure

Anchor Pad

Aeration tubes

Root Mass (Rhisosphere)

 Constructed Wetlands and Floating Wetlands

Low-Cost and Sustainable

Engineered green vegetation
systems for clean-up of lakes,
ponds, industrial and
agricultural wastewater, and
groundwater
 PLANTECO’s Green Technologies
PLANTECO Uses Green Plants, Natural
Occurring Bacteria and Agricultural
Waste products to Cleanup Soils,
Sediment and Water.

Bioremediation - Bacteria Based

Remediation
z Enhance the work of natural bacteria Transportation of Bacteria in Ecuador Amazon
by providing suitable nutrients

™ Nutrients - Agricultural waste

¾ mushroom compost
¾ Bees wax for petroleum
remediation (PRP®)
™ Isolate and grow bacteria then
reintroduce at contaminated site PRP prepared from bees wax
 PRP®: Hydrocarbon Spill Response Product

¾ Patented — all natural product

(virtually 100% beeswax)
¾ Promotes biodegradation utilizing
“native” microbial populations
¾ Hydrophobic/oleophilic
¾ Lowers/minimizes volatilization
¾ 100% biodegradable
¾ Non-toxic
¾ NASA spin-off technology
United Arab Emirates (UAE)
Use of PRP Bioremediation Product to Cleanup
Petroleum Spill at Beach
PRP Powder Applied to Oil at Water Surface
Storm Drain Entrance Before and After
Treatment with PRP®
 Benefits of Green and Sustainable
Environmental Remediation
z Natural bacteria degrade oil without
damaging the habitat
z Agricultural products bind and enhance
bacteria degradation of oil and promote
re-establishment of vegetation
z Riparian buffers consisting of trees,
shrubs and grasses protect oil spills from
reaching valuable water resources.
z Also useful as
¾ Shoreline protection
¾ Nutrient and sediment filtration
¾ Nutrient uptake
Sources of Petroleum Contamination in Amazon

¾ Spills from abandoned wells

¾ Spills from leaking pipelines

¾ Oil mud from exploration

¾ Abandoned equipment
 Challenges to cleaning up oil spills in
sensitive and fragile forested ecosystems
• Sensitive habitat
¾ Pristine water resources
and aquatic life
¾ Rich assortment of
vegetation
¾ Rich assortment of
animals
• Access
• Weather
• Pests
• Accommodation

Transportation challenges in Amazon

 Ecosystems/Vegetation
Very Sensitive Ecosystems requiring great care
¾ Aquatic Ecosystems
‰ Várzeas
‰ igapós
‰ Terrestrial ecosystems
¾ Flora and Vegetation
‰ pioneer formations
Healthy Forest ecosystem and “Pristine” Rivers
‰ dense and open tropical
#
Tzapino
rainforest R. Z APINO

‰ steppe - savannah and R.

ZA
P IN
O

secondary vegetation #
Uchococha Huamuno
#
Tihuano #

R. T IG UE N O #
UE Golondrina
NO R. T IG
#

#
Toñampari #
Quihuaro

R.
CU
#

RA
#

RA
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R. C Zona Derram e
H AL ##
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u n
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4 km
 Rich Amazon Biodiversity

¾ Largest Biodiversity Reserve on Earth

¾ More Than Half of all Life Species
¾ Fauna
‰ 1.400 fishes
‰ 520 amphibians
‰ 550 reptiles
‰ 1.000 birds
‰ 300 mammals

All Species Are Affected By Spilled Oil

On-Site Bioremediation of Oil Spill in the
Amazon
Bioremediation in the Amazon
Most of Trees left in place during
bioremediation
Use of Natural Bacteria to Recover Oil from
Mud in Swamp
 Scientists and Engineers Take Soil and
Water Samples to Monitor that the Cleanup
is Successful
Evidence that the Bioremediation was
Successful
Natural Vegetation Re-established after
Successful Bioremediation
 Conclusions
¾ Proven Green and sustainable
remediation (GSR)
technologies are available to
cleanup the Amazon and other
petroleum waste sites
¾ GSR technologies address the
problem without creating other
environmental problems
¾ GSR technologies are cost-
effective solutions
¾ GSR technologies offer the
best solutions that protect our
rich and sensitive habitats
 Other PLANTECO Green and
Sustainable Technologies

¾ Microbial Mats (BIOMATS®) for wastewater treatment

¾ Surface Application and Mobilization of Nutrient Amendments

(SAMNAS®)

¾ Limestone Buffered Organic Substrate (LBOS) for Acid Mine

Waste remediation
Bioremediation of Contaminated Soils using
Agricultural Waste
¾ Suitable compost tilled into
contaminated soil

¾ Water is added to wet soil and

stimulate growth of natural
bacteria and fungi

¾ The Bacteria and fungi grow and

degrade the contaminant

¾ Once contaminants are degraded

green plants grow over the site
and the ecosystem is restored
 Acknowledgements

A Partnership between Ecuador

and United States firms
Ensures Successful Delivery of
Current Projects

PLANTECO’s Partners
¾ Cantarida (Ecuador)
¾ Micro-Bac International (USA)
¾ UniRem Inc. (USA)
 Contacts
United States
Professor Valentine Nzengung
President & CEO
337 South Milledge Avenue, Suite 227
Athens, Georgia USA
Phone #: 706-316-3525
Cell phone #: 706-202-4296
Email: vnzengun@planteco.com
Ecuador
Mr. José V. Maldonado
PLANTECO Ecuador
Office in Quito. Av. Colón E4-75
y 9 de octubre
Edificio PA-CO 7mo. piso
PO BOX: 17-07-8755
Phones: (593-2) 2545454 -
2233944 – 2557532 Office
email: jvmaldonado@kennet.com.ec
 Thank you very much

We would appreciate your questions

and comments