Non-biological pollutants are a huge problem for our planet’s waterways but sometimes these manmade pollutants cause a rise in harmful bacteria and viruses that further make a natural space uninhabitable. Which is to say, there may not be much in the way of trash that are is killing a waterway, the issue could be smaller than our human eyes can see. One scientist used nanotechnology to clean up and recover an entire wetland, saving it from utter destruction.
Marino Morikawa used nanobubbles to clean up El Cascajo, mostly on his own. The wetlands that were set to be cut off completely due to contamination, are now at the point where the natural wildlife has returned.
Nanobubbles are tiny bubbles, like, really tiny, that attract bacterial and metals using a static charge. Then they decompose, release free radicals and take out viruses found in the contaminated water. He combined this with biofilters and over a period of three years had cleaned up the wetland. The new process is now recognized by the Commission of Science, Technology and Innovation so hopefully, we can will see this process used in other parts of the world to save wetlands.