New Bacteria Species Found at Nuclear Site
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Scientists have discovered more than 100 species of bacteria living in the toxic sediment beneath underground tanks that have leaked radioactive waste at the Hanford nuclear reservation in Washington, home to some of the most highly contaminated soil in the world.
The high levels of radiation in the soil would kill most microorganisms. Proteins from the bacteria were very different from those in scientific databases, researchers said, indicating that this class of organisms had received very little study.
