Another reason not to live in Los Angeles…burping tar bacteria, yuk…
Researchers learn why tar pits are bubbly
Newly discovered bacteria in natural asphalt are munching on the petroleum and burping up methane gas in Hancock Park.
By Jia-Rui Chong
Times Staff Writer
May 14, 2007
Like many other visitors to the La Brea tar pits, sisters Samantha and Katie Salazar watched a basketball-sized bubble emerge from dark, slimy gunk Sunday and wondered, why are the tar pits bubbly?
For years, educators at the Hancock Park site could only guess that methane gas was being released as the byproduct of oil creation 1,000 feet below the surface.
Researchers at UC Riverside have finally found the answer: Hardy bacteria embedded in the natural asphalt are eating away at the petroleum and burping up methane.
