SOIL-MEDIATED DISPOSAL OF AN INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATER
-A CASE HISTORY
Gary G. Baker, Instructor
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana, Pennsylvania 15701
Paul G. Moe, Professor of Bacteriology
Division of Plant Sciences
West Virginia University
Morgantown, West Virginia 26506
INTRODUCTION
The use of soil as a disposal medium for oily waste materials has been studied by several
companies, including E. I. duPont de Nemours, Humbel, Shell and Marathon Oil Companies.
Prior to 1968, this work was done on a trial and error basis with no attempt to study decomposition rates, effects of infiltration, or allowable application rates. In 1970, however,
the Shell Oil Company in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted an extensive study into this method of disposal of oily wastes [ 1 ]. The results of
this study demonstrated that three types of oily wastes, designated as "crude", "bunker"
and "waxy raffinated" oil, were readily decomposed in the soil at a rate of 35 bbls/acre/mo.
Of the microorganisms isolated from the treatment areas, five were found to be the most
active in degrading oil:   Arthrobacter,   Corynebacterium, Flavobacterium, Nocardia and
Pseudomonas.     Francke and Clarke [2] later reported the loss of used crankcase and
vacuum pump oils from experimental plots at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Cook and Westlake
[3] demonstrated the degradation of crude oil in Arctic soils, and Odu [4] was able to show
the breakdown of crude oil, resulting from the "blowout" of an oil well, in the sandy soils of
Nigeria.
While these workers were able to demonstrate the apparent breakdown of various oils in
the soil environment, no attempt was made to examine the residues that remained in the
treated soils. The ecological significance of these residues was pointed out by Raymond et
al. [5].  Utilizing field plot studied, they found that a sufficient amount of residue remained
nine months after oil had been applied to a soil to cause an inhibition of plant growth.  Similarly, Lehtomaki and Niemela [6] reported that oil may persist in the soil for several years,
resulting in serious damage to plant life. The degree of phytotoxicity expressed appears to
depend on the type of oil used, amount of residue present in the soil, environmental conditions and the plant species involved [7].
In December of 1972 the Ravenswood Works of the Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical
Corporation initiated a land application program for the disposal of waste oil emulsion
which had been used as a coolant in their rolling mills.   This waste oil emulsion, which
originally contained about 5% mixed hydrocarbons, was collected and held in large storage
ponds where the emulsion partially broke down allowing most of the oil to rise to the
surface of the pond.  This oil was recovered by skimming it off the surface of the pond and
used as a supplemental fuel in the plant. The remaining oil emulsion, which still contained
about 0.5% mixed hydrocarbons along with various organic and inorganic additives that
were used to formulate and stabilize the emulsion, was spray irrigated on to a 14.6 acre plot
of Huntington silt loam soil at a rate of 0.5 inches per week.
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