This industrial location is not radioactive, but the soil conditions are similar to those of cement-based radioactive waste locations.
According to researchers, the ability of the bacteria to live in such conditions and feed on isosaccharinic acid (ISA) makes it ideal for helping in the disposal of nuclear waste.
Usually, large volumes of nuclear waste are disposed in deep underground. The intermediate-level waste (ILW), which is radioactive waste material, is covered in concrete before being disposed into underground vaults.
When ground water touches this radioactive material, it reacts with the cement and becomes highly alkaline, thereby driving chemical reactions and subsequent breakdown of ‘cellulose’ based materials in the complex wastes.
A product associated with these reactions is the isosaccharinic acid (ISA), which is a cause of concern as it tends to react with radionuclides.
Radionuclides tend to become more soluble if the ISA binds to radionuclides and can flow out of the underground vaults to surface environments, which inturn could enter the food chain.
The single cell organisms can not only live in the highly alkaline wastes, but also can use the ISA as a source of food.
The University of Manchester’s School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences professor Jonathan Lloyd said: "Nuclear waste will remain buried deep underground for many thousands of years so there is plenty of time for the bacteria to become adapted."
This study was published in the ISME journal.
