Environ. Sci. Technol. 2001, 35, 1118-1126
Methyl tert-Butyl Ether Biodegradation by Indigenous Aquifer Microorganisms under Natural and Artificial Oxic Conditions JAMES E. LANDMEYER,* FRANCIS H. CHAPELLE, HENRY H. HERLONG, AND PAUL M. BRADLEY U.S. Geological Survey, Suite 129, 720 Gracern Road, Columbia, South Carolina 29210-7651
Microbial communities indigenous to a shallow groundwater system near Beaufort, SC, degraded milligram per liter concentrations of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) under natural and artificial oxic conditions. Significant MTBE biodegradation was observed where anoxic, MTBEcontaminated groundwater discharged to a concrete-lined ditch. In the anoxic groundwater adjacent to the ditch, concentrations of MTBE were >1 mg/L. Where groundwater discharge occurs, dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations beneath the ditch exceeded 1.0 mg/L to a depth of 1.5 m, and MTBE concentrations decreased to
