Environmental parameters controlling microbial activities in terrestrial subsurface environments. Technical completion report

Abstract

This project was begun in July 1988 as part of Phase I of the Deep Microbiology Subprogram. At this time, the Subprogram was preparing for sampling near the Savannah River Site (SRS) from what was being termed the ``Investigator`s Hole.`` This was the fourth hole drilled for sampling in the coastal plain sediments at a site near the SRS. Since there was a possibility of sampling from the saline Triassic basin in the deeper regions in this fourth hole, there was particular interest in quantifying halotolerant microorganisms from these samples and in determining the responses of subsurface microbes to a range of soft concentrations. Further interest in the soft tolerances of microbes from these coastal sediments arose from the fact that all of these sediments were deposited under marine conditions. It was also anticipated that samples would be available from the shallow unsaturated (vadose) zone at this site, so there was interest in quantifying microbial responses to matric water potential as well as solute water potential. The initial objectives of this research project were to: characterize microbial communities in a saline aquifer; determine the potential for microbial metabolism of selected organic compounds in a saline aquifers; characterize microbial communities in unsaturated subsurface materials (vadose zones); and determine the potential for microbial metabolism of selected organic compounds in unsaturated subsurface materials (vadose zones). Samples were collected from the borehole during a period extending from August to October 1988. A total of nine samples were express shipped to New Mexico Tech for analyses. These were all saturated zone samples from six different geological formations. Water contents and water potentials were measured at the time of sample arrival.