EM:/ Tons of Dow dioxin soil removed from park

On Sat, July 25, 2009 2:04 pm, Larry Nooden wrote:

... see below ...

Greetings,

If you want more insight on bioremediation, there is a wealth of knowledge
available on the US Composting Council open public forum. I would pose the
question of the practicality of Phanerochaete chrysosporium to them.

Especially knowledgeable is Dr. Rufus Chaney, one of the head researchers
at the USDA and a world expert on all things related to composting and
bioremediation.

To post to their forum, you first have to register:

http://mailman.cloudnet.com/mailman/listinfo/compost

Although Phanerochaete chrysosporium is not a mushroom per se, I would
also consult the fungus expert Paul Stamets who recently wrote the
bioremediation book,  "Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save The
World", as he is most certainly aware of Phanerochaete chrysosporium.

Here's his book:

http://www.amazon.com/Mycelium-Running-Mushrooms-Help-World/dp/1580085792/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1248550056&sr=1-1

He also is the owner of Fungi Perfecti which sells everything relating to
mushrooms, including spawn to grow your own shitakes, etc. which I have
been doing for years, not for remediation but to eat, preferably sauteed
in a little olive oil with garlic.

Here's his site with contact info:

http://www.fungi.com

Regards,

Lowell Prag

-----------------

On Sat, July 25, 2009 2:04 pm, Larry Nooden wrote:

These white rot fungi decompose the lignin (brownish) in wood leaving a
white mostly cellulosic residue behind.  Lignin is a polymer of aromatic
rings bearing some resemblance to dioxin and some other (but not all)
pollutants, and the enzymes that degrade lignin can also attack dioxin et
al.   I think the trick is to keep the fungi going in the polluted soil  I
do not know how well that is going.

On Sat, 25 Jul 2009 11:40:39 -0400, "The Henry's" <gehenry at chartermi.net>
wrote:
> I've heard talks about that in the past, but don't think they have found
> anything yet that works well enough.
>
> Kathy Henry
> www.trwnews.net
>   ----- Original Message -----
>   From: James Lang
>   To: Kathy & Gary Henry ; enviro-mich at great-lakes.net
>   Sent: Saturday, July 25, 2009 9:54 AM
>   Subject: RE: EM:/ Tons of Dow dioxin soil removed from park
>
>
>   As long as Dow is allowed to dump dioxin in landfills, why not try
>   bioremediation?
>
>   Removing soil or dredging doesn't make toxins go away.  It simply
removes
>   the contaminants from river bottoms, river banks and flood plains and
>   places them in slurry pits or landfills.
>
>   Consider white rot fungus, P hanerochaete chrysosporium, named for the
>   white seams of pure cellulose the fungus separates in decomposing
> wood.

>   Several years ago, at the Department of Energy's Joint Genome
> Institute
>   in Walnut Creek, California, scientists took a long, hard look at
> white
>   rot fungus.  They found that, of the hundreds of enzymes in the
> fungus,
>   some are able to disassemble toxic chemicals like PCBs, PCP, PAHs and
>   dioxin.
>
>   The operative word here is "disassemble."  Many plants absorb toxins
>   intact.  White rot fungus breaks down harmful compounds into benign
>   derivatives.  This trait has been attributed to some other fungi, as
>   well.
>
>   We should harness this characteristic in a practical application to
>   eliminate dangerous chemicals in landfills, old industrial sites and
>   dredging pits once and for all.
>
>   --  Jim Lang
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>   From: gehenry at chartermi.net
>   To: enviro-mich at great-lakes.net
>   Date: Sat, 25 Jul 2009 01:08:34 -0400
>   Subject: Re: EM:/ Tons of Dow dioxin soil removed from park
>
>
>   Yes, it's very sad.  EPA is allowing the dioxin to be dumped every
>   where.---
>
>
>   "EPA officials say that picnic tables have been painted, playground
>   equipment has been washed and 17,370 tons of dioxin-contaminated soil
has
>   been removed and dumped at Waste Management’s People’s landfill in
>   Birch Run".
>
>
http://michiganmessenger.com/23618/17370-tons-of-dow-dioxin-contaminated-soil-removed-from-park-hot-spot
>
>   Dumped with regular garbage.  Let's spread the love..
>
>   Kathy Henry
>     ----- Original Message -----
>
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