Ecological Benefits of Bioremediation of Oil Contaminated Water in Rich Savannah of Palogue, Upper Nile Area-Southern Sudan

u p Abstract Plants and their associated microbes can be used in the cleanup and prevention of environmental pollution. This growing technology uses natural processes to break down, stabilize, or accumulate pollutants. It is well established that most crude oils are biodegradable to a great extent, especially components as short linear alkanes or simple aromatic hydrocarbons. However, the heavy fraction, made of long-chain saturated and polyaromatic hydrocarbons and a considerable fraction of asphaltenes and resins, is generally recalcitrant to degradation. Based upon fi eldwork conducted during February 2010, bioremediation of oil contaminated water is investigated in Palogue oil fi elds in the rich savannah of Upper Nile area in southern Sudan. The paper reviews the ecological benefi ts of bioremediation to pro- duce a clean environment of oil pollutants there, and how far it could be benefi t for the Sudan, supported from some world experiences. The main fi ndings suggested valuable results by the Reed Bed ''Phragmites australis'' (Figure 1) which breaks down the hydrocarbons sequence to produce free water of contaminants, now suitable for forestry development and recovery of natural fauna after decades of military confl ict. The paper concluded that community awareness is essentially imperative and a national strategy is needed for further adaptive methods for the environment conservation. and air pollution from petroleum emissions before being burned as fuel are also environmental impacts associated with oil. Here, forest clearance and wood burning is adding to the CO 2 in the atmosphere as that area of the Amazon rain forest which was burned, adding 500 million tones of CO 2 to the atmosphere (1). Also the land taken up by all of the wells, pipelines, roads, processing plants and other facilities needed to remove oil from the ground and turn it into commercial products. The processes of oil exploration and production produce many wastes which are no longer used for their original purpose and requires disposal. Oilfield Wastes include used lubricants, filters, waste oil, sludge, etc. Such wastes are hazardous to people, property and the environment and should be managed properly. Concerning ocean pollution, only 12% of the oil that enters the oceans comes from tanker accidents; while over 70% of oil pollution at sea comes from routine shipping and from the oil people pour down drains on land. Here, heat increases temperature that results in the deaths of many aquatic organisms. Several billion salmon and herring eggs are also believed to have been destroyed (2). Petroleum often pollutes water bodies in the form of oil, resulting from oil spills.