Environmental applications of genetic algorithms

An application of genetic algorithms to a problem of environmental restoration is presented. The application concerns the in-situ bioremediation of contaminated soils, where indigeneous bacteria are stimulated to degrade the contaminant, by introducing a suitable nutrient solution directly in the soil. Forecasting the results of field operations from laboratory and pilot plant data is very important, and it requires the use of simulation models, which describe the interaction between different physical, chemical and biological phenomena. The main features are briefly summarized of a bioremediation model based on the paradigm of cellular automata, which successfully describes data obtained at a pilot plant scale. Genetic algorithms have been used in order to tailor the model to a specific case, namely contamination by phenol.