The role of decision support for bioremediation strategies, exemplified by hydrocarbons for in site and ex situ procedures.

Abstract

Despite the widespread availability of state-of-the-art biological techniques, remediation practitioners have been slow to adopt these technologies to assist in designing or indeed monitoring remediation strategies. In part, this is because practitioners are driven by cost and fail to see the benefit of emerging technologies, and in part because most companies have only a small portfolio of procedures available to them. Here, we review the component parts required to design a decision support tool, appraise one that the authors have developed and critically evaluate its application to case studies. If bioremediation is to become adopted, then it is likely to have to operate in parallel with other remediation methods. Furthermore, remediation strategies must couple effective technology with a transparency of information such that all parties (practitioners, developers and stakeholders) understand how decisions were reached.