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Extreme Bugs Found In Slag Dump

Posted by timothy on from the swamp-thang dept.

lonefox_illuminus writes "The world's most alkaline lifeforms are living in contaminated water in the U.S. These microbial little fellas are able to exist in an environment as harsh and toxic as caustic soda."

4 of 53 comments (clear)

  1. To environmentalists everywhere... by jgardn · · Score: 4, Interesting

    we must make sure that the slag dump is a protected environment. Any work in cleaning up the dump could result in the extinction of entire species of bacteria.

    Perhaps we could set up other toxic slag dump wildlife preserves in other places throughout the world.

    --
    The radical sect of Islam would either see you dead or "reverted" to Islam.
  2. The only serious post... by Descartes · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I don't know much about these kinds of bugs but I used to live in an area that was close to an old copper mine. The community tried all kinds of things to deal with the slag, including planting sunflowers (a.k.a. Jerusalem Artichokes) in it. IANABiologist, does anyone know if these things could actually be used to clean up slag? The article didn't really go in depth.

  3. Living in extreme environments is one thing... by aphexbrett · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Living in extreme environments is one thing, but completely different respiration systems is another thing entirely. This article reminds me of one I saw here. Apparently, some microbes discovered utilize iron as opposed to oxygen in order to sustain themselves. That's quite an accomplishment.

  4. One problem with this though... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Although life can exist in these environments, did it actually arise in these environments or did it evolve from non-extreme ones? In the case that life could spontaneously evolve in these harsh conditions (harsh to me - perhaps not Cowboy Neal), then I would expect life everywhere in the universe. However, on the other hand, if they have to originate in 'nicer' climes and then evolve, then our search becomes more difficult.

    It's just that I find it difficult to believe that the components that make up life could actually form in these extreme heat/pH conditions.

    Just my cowardly 2 cents...