What we are attempting to do at its core is to set things back to the way they were before Trichloroethylene was dumped in the environment. However, we can't simply just remove it from the system. To make it so it's actually safe for people to return to their homes and live on their land safely, some other change has to occur.

The introduction of modified bacteria to remediate the environment is a solution that has myriad chances to affect the environment and those self-same people negatively.

What can we do to make sure what we do is actually for the benefit of everyone involved?

The project’s design was entirely centered around a relevant issue currently affecting our community. The danger of TCE pollution is not theoretical; the damage done by the superfund site has become tangible and little has been done to alleviate the issue. Unfortunately, in situations such as this where chemicals are used haphazardly and land is grossly mismanaged, demographics of lower socioeconomic status are the most likely to be affected.
The use of microbes for bioremediation allows for a safe and efficient approach to degrade harmful contaminants. Bioremediation expedites the natural clean-up process and can treat the contaminated area without the removal of sediment or groundwater. Additionally, because bioremediation requires less labor and equipment, the overall cost of bioremediation is dramatically less than other methods.
Our team strongly believes that the degradation of TCE through the introduction of a novel metabolic pathway in E. Coli is the most advantageous means of addressing the obstacle at hand.