Effects of methanol on the microflora of an arctic soil

The effect of 36 lm^?2 of 20% and 100% methanol spillage on the microflora of a soil near Inuvik, N.W.T. was assessed. Gas-liquid chromatography was used to monitor the residual methanol in the soil. Associated with residual methanol determination were measurements of changes in numbers of bacteria, fungal standing crop, respiration and isolation of methanol utilizing bacteria. Twenty percent methanol spillage had two different effects on the surface vegetation, in that the vegetation was killed in some plots and not others. The applied methanol disappeared completely between 1 and 4 weeks. No increased soil activity (as indicated by respiration, bacterial numbers, fungal standing crop) was detected when methanol was present in the soil. Because only one bacterium (i.e. pink gram negative rods) metabolized only very small concentrations of methanol, it was concluded that biodegradation of methanol was not a significant agent affecting methanol loss from the soil.