Researchers from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab in Berkeley, Calif., reported in the online journal, Sciencexpress that they have identified a new microbes in the Gulf of Mexico waters that are destroying oil from the BP spill. Previously, researchers reported large plumes of dispersed oil deep under the gulf’s surface. One such plume stretched 22 miles. Scientists had expressed concern that the natural processes would deplete the oxygen levels in the sea water resulting in huge dead zones and a major threat to sea life forms.

Terry Hazen, lead researcher at Lawrence Berkley National Lab said that their findings suggest a much larger potential for intrinsic bioremediation in deep-sea oil spills than previously thought. From May 25 through June 2, his team collected more than 200 samples from 17 deep-water locations. They discovered a dominant microbe species that is closely related to members of Oceanospirillales that thrived in colder water recorded at 41 degrees F. The microbes were dispatching the oil much quicker than anticipated. They also noted oxygen saturation within the plume was 59 percent compared to 67 percent outside the area. That is an insignificant reduction in oxygen levels.

The scientists speculated that because oil and gas products have naturally seeped into the waters for centuries that these microbes naturally developed over time. The release of large volumes of oil resulted in a population explosion to defend the ecosystem.

The research was supported by an existing grant with the Energy Biosciences Institute, a partnership led by the U.C. Berkeley and the University of Illinois that is funded by a $500 million, 10-year grant from BP. Other support came from the U.S. Department of Energy and the University of Oklahoma Research Foundation.

Sciencexpress is the online edition of the journal Science.