Study doubts bacterial role in Gulf oil clean-up

FILE - This Wednesday, April 21, 2010 file photo shows oil in the Gulf of Mexico, more than 50 miles southeast of Venice on Louisiana's tip, as a large plume of smoke rises from fires on BP's Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig. An April 20, 2010 explosion at the offshore platform killed 11 men, and the subsequent leak released an estimated 172 million gallons of petroleum into the gulf. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

A widely publicized study concluded that a bacterial bloom consumed the methane discharged from the Deepwater Horizon well. Now, a recent study has shown low measured rates of methane consumption by bacteria.