This Page Contains Information on the Many uses for Our Remedy Product Line

 

 
 

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How Beneficial Microbes Work

​​Microorganisms have been breaking down chemicals in their environment to use as a food source since the first microbe evolved on our planet over four billion years ago. The atmosphere in which early bacteria grew and flourished was a toxic chemical sea of water and gases such as methane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, ammonia and hydrogen, as well as deadly carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen cyanide. The young earth’s atmosphere contained little or no free oxygen; therefore oxygen-breathing organisms did not exist as they do today. Temperatures in excess of 100 C (212F) on the planet were an additional factor making the atmosphere inhospitable to all but the most heat loving microbes.​

Development of present day microbes, including anaerobes, facultative anaerobic and aerobic species was dependent on the changes in microorganisms which would produce oxygen by harnessing the suns energy and using the abundant carbon dioxide gas in the atmosphere as a carbon source in the process of photosynthesis. Therefore, on early earth, there were microbes which could utilize no oxygen and would die in its presence since oxygen produced toxic free-radicals inside the cell. And there were microbes which had evolved to produce and tolerate toxic oxygen compounds and paved the way for those of us who cannot live without some oxygen in the air we breathe (Brock, 1991).

In an effort to establish niches of their own, certain ancient microbes developed ways to live in both worlds and thus were able to live with or without oxygen. These organisms are known today as facultative anaerobes. As mentioned above, bio-remediation is not new, although the present day industrial uses of it are relatively new, having been “developed” within the last 25 years. There uses are sometimes controversial to a public which has been taught that “the only good microbes are dead microbes”.

However, nothing could be further from the truth… other than a relatively few pathogenic strains of microorganisms, there are over 10,000 known species which are normally harmless to human beings. HOMO SAPIENS are the unknowing recipients of countless beneficial chemical reactions carried out by microbes. These include oxygen production, nitrogen fixation, vitamins, antibiotic production and the break down of numerous compounds in our soils and drinking water that would otherwise be toxic to human life. Bacteria are also responsible for the decay and degradation of all forms of dead organic matter (both plant and animal).

The Environmental Solution’s microbe formulations contain a broad and diverse population of live, naturally occurring beneficial microorganisms. These natural degraders are environmentally safe and literally breathe life back into most polluted and contaminated soil and water. The mixture of microorganisms in The Environmental Solution’s microbe formulations are similar to the first primordial mixture of microorganisms found on earth, in that it is composed of all three types of microbes: those that require oxygen (aerobes), those that require no oxygen (anaerobes) and those that can live with or without oxygen (facultative anaerobes).

The Environmental Solution’s microbe formulations are a liquid culture of living microorganism capable of performing a variety of bio-degrative tasks. Such tasks include the reduction of salts in the soil, thus reducing Hardpan, the breakdown of compounds such as fertilizers, diesel, gasoline, oil, pesticides and hydrocarbon spills on oil field production sites. Other tasks include the promotion of enzymes, vitamins and antibiotics.

Many of the above tasks constitute a definition of bio-remediation, which is the process by which microorganisms are used to decontaminate toxic substances in water and soil. By the addition of a mixture of microbes which have the ability to degrade toxic substances (petroleum spills, highly concentrated salts and other toxic waste (Fry, et al 1992). Many contaminated sites may be cleaned up on site. The decontaminating microorganisms, the beneficial microbes and fungi, are now being used as a natural remedy to clean up toxic waste sites and to reduce hard pan in America’s farmlands.

While there are many biological products on the market which contain only a single or a few microbial types, The Environmental Solution’s microbe formulations provides a unique blend of microorganisms in a liquid form. The microbes in our formulations work together as a family, resulting in the beneficial breakdown of contaminates in the soil and water. The complex mixture of naturally occurring microorganisms found in The Environmental Solution microbe formulations have been grown in a culture together for over 30 years, the mixture contains no genetically engineered microbes.

Because the microbes in our mixture are grown under conditions of starvation, its members begin the degradation of many contaminates as soon as they are introduced into the soil or water. A starved condition in human beings is undesirable, whereas with microbes, starvation is a normal part of their life cycle. This is the state that most microbes are in whether they are in soil or water when conditions of nutrition are typically limited (Kjelleberg, 1993). Since The Environmental Solution’s microbe formulations are in a state of starvation before application as a biological control, the microorganisms are naturally ready to devour any food source given to them, whether it be crude oil from a broken pipeline in Alaska or in South Texas. The microbes find these “undesirables” excellent sources of carbon and energy (organic matter).​

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​Use of The Environmental Solution's Waste and Odor Remedy

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The use of beneficial microbes in waste water treatment plants is well documented. They are an integral piece of the waste water treatment process. However, due to various circumstances, the natural microbial population in a facility can become depleted resulting in system back-ups, organic material build-up and overall reduction in system efficiency. It is at this point when supplementation of a microbial product becomes necessary.​

Traditionally, microorganisms are used in the secondary treatment of waste water to remove dissolved organic matter. The microbes are used in fixed film systems, suspended film systems or lagoon systems, depending upon the preference of the treatment plant. All of which are stages that microbial supplementation can be added with benefit. A higher concentration of microbes is going to be able to more quickly remove the organic matter from the water, particularly in the case of lagoon systems where it can take several months for the degradation of waste to be completed. ​

 Microbes will also benefit other stages of the process. Microbes added into the primary treatment phase can work to degrade bottom and surface solids, resulting in less production of sludge. Implementation here can cause the secondary treatment phase to be even more effective through a more thorough treatment in the primary phase.

 In some waste water treatment plants, an advanced treatment stage is necessary to remove excess nutrients that can result in algae blooms and other downstream issues. Microbes can be substituted for chemicals in this stage to keep the treatment process as natural as possible and minimize further pollution.​

 Finally, the addition of microorganisms can prove beneficial in reducing the volume of sludge that must be disposed. As a byproduct of the waste water treatment, sludge is filtered out throughout the various treatment stages and must be treated before disposal. Microbes aid in the treatment and disposal of the sludge by decomposing additional organic matter and reducing volume, while also limiting the noxious odors emitted by the sludge. ​

 It is not hard to see why so many waste water treatment plants are using biological alternatives in their systems. Aside from the benefits of improved capacity, improved efficiency and lowered operational costs, microbes also keep the treatment process as natural as possible, which is the ultimate goal of a waste water treatment plant.​

 The Environmental Solution’s Waste & Odor microbial product is a plethora of 19 families of over 125 species of  pre and pro-biotic microbes that work supremely in providing the most excellent results for any type of waste water operation. MSDS are all 0’s. And are available upon request.

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Use of Beneficial Microbes for Soil

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In recent years the breakdown of the structure of the surface layers of soil under continuous cultivation in the paralleling decline in their productivity has been a matter of increasing concern.​

This decline in production from soils which require constantly increasing expenditures for tillage and water represents even greater economic problems for the farmer and the nation. Increased usage of chemical fertilizers and inorganic soil conditioners, while serving other beneficial purposes, has not alleviated the deterioration of soil structures, loss of organic matter, and the waste of water and fertilizers.

In many cases the chemicals used have aggravated the situation. A productive soil is characterized not necessarily by the mere presence of large quantities of plant nutrients, but by the rapidity with which the soil microbes make nutrients available to the higher plants. The processes that take place within the soil are, for the most part, dependent first upon the activities of living organisms; and hence, the existence of higher plants depends on the activities of the soil microbes.

Dr. S. A. Waksman stated in 1952, "The humus content, plus active micro-organisms, are equivalent to a high degree of fertility." Another noted microbiologist Dr. Stanley E. Wedberg, University of Connecticut, stated "The fertility of the soil is in direct proportion to the number and activity of soil microorganisms."

There is a correlation between high humus content and high microbial activity in the soil; but where does the humus come from? Organic matter is the source of energy and food supply for the soil organisms and microorganisms.

As organic matter returns to the soil, it is digested by microbes and the resulting cellular material is mixed with the living and dead bodies of bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes and other microscopic forms of life together with certain excretory materials produced during their life cycles to form a dynamic, ever changing, organic material called HUMUS. Humus is the major storehouse of plant nutrients in the soil. It is literally the "fat of the land."

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 Microorganisms are involved in many beneficial activities within the soil. Those activities include:   ​​​​​​

     

      *decomposition of crop residues

      *mineralization of soil organic matter

      *synthesis of soil organic matter

      *nitrification

      *fixation of nitrogen

      *immobilization of mineral nutrients

      *formation of organic substances which may be both stimulating and toxic to plant growth

      *Organic substances formed by microorganisms may influence soil structure stabilization,

      *binding particles of soil together to permit better water penetration and reduce erosion.

 

Many cropping and tillage practices that farmers use are effective in crop production because of their influence on microbial activity. For example, when the soil is tilled, aeration is favorable for the growth of the nitrogen, sulfur, and iron oxidizing organisms. When the soil lacks oxygen, it is unfavorable as an environment for many plants and organisms.

 Every practice or management system influences microbial activity which in turn influences the decomposition of plant residues, the availability of nutrients within the soil structure. These all influence the crop growth, and the growth of crops determines the soil cover and the resulting organic matter. This influences the balance between the various types of microorganisms whose actions play a major role in the carbon, nitrogen and mineral cycles and thus governs to a great extent the fertility of the soil.

 Each spoonful of mellow soil contains billions of living microscopic organisms. Multiply this by the number of spoonfuls of soil in an acre and you have figures that are astronomical. In fact, the living bacteria alone in an acre of soil of average fertility would weigh as much as a medium size cow. This seething mass of microorganisms constitutes a crop of three to five tons per acre foot of soil that the farmer sustains beneath the soil surface, in addition to the crop that he grows above ground. If the crop of microorganisms beneath the surface does not have adequate food, the crop above ground may suffer from competition for mineral nutrients and is more susceptible to disease.

"Microorganisms eat at the first table. They are in contact with almost every particle of soil, but plant roots are not. Without micro organic life, soil, the dynamic perpetual system that sustains terrestrial life, would become an inert mass incapable of providing food. Microorganisms decompose organic material and release elements and organic food for repeated use." states Dr. T. M. McCalla, research microbiologist, University of Nebraska.

Microorganisms need three things... air, water and an energy source starting with organic matter. John Box, Extension agronomist, Texas A. & M., has written, "the microbe is your best friend and may be the most important livestock you produce. Microbes live in the surface layers of the soil in fantastic numbers. Since we cannot see them, we often neglect them, Mike and his cousins can perform chemical miracles that man has not yet learned to duplicate. Treat him well and give him the raw materials with which to work, and he will keep your soils in top production."

In addition to a food supply, you can help by preventing soil compaction. Compaction reduces air supplies, limiting the ability of microbes to perform. Compaction has an adverse effect on root development and the soil's ability to absorb and hold water. Without active soil microorganisms man would long ago have been covered up by his own waste. Fortunately, Soil Remedy microbes can help the soil with this process.

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 How much life is in your soil?

A good microscope could easily show how much life is contained in any soil sample. Barring that, one could simply see how many earthworms are in sample of soil. Earthworms are one of the best indicators of a well balanced soil. If your soil doesn't have them in great numbers, then you can be reasonably sure that your soil could use improvement. If they are very numerous you can know that in most years your soil will be most productive.

Jack Denton Scott, writing in the August-September 1968, National Wildlife says about the earthworm, "As a soil chemist he has few equals. The earthworm churns the earth into rich topsoil by blending in vegetable matter from the surface into the ground below, and by bringing mineral rich subsoil up where plants can use it. He drags leaves down into his burrow where bacteria can work on them. What he eats emerges in little clumps of dirt called castings. Passing through the worm's digestive tract, both alkalis and acids become more neutralized. Earth minerals and chemical are broken down, enriching the soil with particle nutrients that plants and seedlings can more easily assimilate.

Scientists comparing the top six-inch layer of the soil with the castings contained in a form that plants can use found there are five times as much nitrate, twice as much calcium, two and a half times as much magnesium, seven times as much phosphorus and 11 times more potassium. Subsequently, scientists found that the soil’s content of actinomycetes  play a significant role in decomposing all organic matter into humus and multiply seven times as they pass through the earthworm. Our amazing friend is as energetic as he is talented. Each mature earthworm casts up about half a pound of humus a year.

Since a population of 50,000 earthworms in an acre of normal ground is common (seven million have been found) and one can figure conservatively that earthworms are producing 12 and a half tons of topsoil a year in each acre of good garden-type soil." As our knowledge of the soil microbes grows, we will continually learn ways of increasing those species which are needed to overcome problems which we have created by changing the natural environment or problems which existed before, but which have grown out of hand, such as the various fungal diseases. Certainly the time is here for a deeper look into our soil and the problems that limit their production. Extensive research since 1968 has resulted in a very high quality, yet moderately priced product:

 

Soil Remedy

 Do you have problematic soil? The Environmental Solution’s Soil Remedy can help with your soil problems, including:

​* Hardpans

* Compacted soils

* Low water holding capacity

* Excessive toxic salts

* Poor water penetration

* Low productivity from tied up plant food

Because all areas and soils vary, application will also vary from ground to air application. In many instances Soil Remedy is injected or knifed into the soil. A very economical way to apply Soil Remedy microbes is to inject it into the water of a sprinkler irrigation system. Foliar application is recommended in the late evening or early morning or can be applied directly on the soil to help decomposition of vegetable matter.

If good management is used in the application of The Environmental Solution’s Soil Remedy, then you can expect good results.

Most crops require 13 pints of  Soil Remedy per acre per year.  

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