Photo caption: UC Microbiology PhD student Kelsey McKenzie is studying microorganisms found deep underground in New Zealand-first research.
Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury (UC) Microbiology PhD student Kelsey McKenzie is carrying out the research, which is a first for Aotearoa New Zealand.
She is studying microorganisms found in water samples extracted from deep underground oil and gas reservoirs in Taranaki, with early results suggesting the microbial communities in Aotearoa are quite different to those found at similar reservoir sites internationally.
“The goal is to carry out genome sequencing so we can find out more about the microbes’ DNA, and how they behave and react when exposed to hydrogen,” McKenzie says.
Her research, which began in 2023, involves studying samples taken from four different oil and gas exploration sites. It is just one part of a five-year UC-led project funded by the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment’s Endeavour Fund with the goal of reducing carbon emissions, including exploring options for underground hydrogen storage in Aotearoa.
Hydrogen is widely seen as a valuable tool in the global move away from fossil fuels towards more sustainable energy sources. However, finding a place to store large quantities of the gas after it has been generated is a big challenge facing researchers.
McKenzie says some of the underground microbes she is studying thrive in a hydrogen-rich environment and use it as an energy source. “This work will help us understand how these organisms would interact with hydrogen before we start pumping hydrogen into their environment.”
The microscopic organisms she is studying are part of a group known as “extremophiles” because they can survive and thrive in extreme environments with minimal oxygen, at high pressures, and in temperatures of 80 degrees or higher.
McKenzie says genome sequencing is revealing important traits and information about how the microorganisms would interact with hydrogen. So far, she has found that some have genes capable of both utilising and creating hydrogen. “Studying the DNA of these microorganisms will tell us broadly speaking what’s down there, what kinds of species there are, what kind of genes they have, and what they can do.”
She has been growing the microorganisms in a UC lab so they can be used as samples for future experiments.
McKenzie describes her groundbreaking microbiology research as “great fun”.
“It’s a really nice mix of analysing and sequencing data and doing work in the lab. It’s an awesome project to be a part of and it’s really exciting that this is the first time it has been done in New Zealand.”
UC School of Biological Sciences Professor Matthew Stott, who is supervising McKenzie’s research, says there can be up to 100,000 microorganisms in just one millilitre of water.
“There’s a lot of life down there in these oil and gas reservoirs – billions and billions of bacteria – so it’s important to find out what the impact and consequences would be of using these kinds of spaces to store hydrogen in the future,” Professor Stott says.
“If we know what the likely consequences will be, then we can take steps to mitigate them. We hope this research will contribute to the global effort towards progressing underground hydrogen storage and promoting green energy sources.”
