Saturday, April 24, 2010

Can bacteria or insects live in an alkaline or alkaloid environment?

llinois groundwater scientists have found microbial communities thriving in the slag dumps of the Lake Calumet region of southeast Chicago where the water can reach extraordinary alkalinity of pH 12.8. That's comparable to caustic soda and floor strippers -- far beyond known naturally occurring alkaline environments.





The closest known relatives of some of the microbes are in South Africa, Greenland and the alkaline waters of Mono Lake, California.


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