Tariq Siddique

Associate professor
780-492-2899
tariq.siddique@ualberta.ca

Research areas

Biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons under anaerobic conditions; metabolic pathways of hydrocarbon degradation; and molecular fingerprinting of hydrocarbon-degrading microbial communities

Research website

people.ales.ualberta.ca/tariqsiddique


Tariq shares why soil science sparks his interest and research focus

Why is soil important?

From an environmental standpoint, soil is a living system that interacts with the atmosphere (exchange of gases, including greenhouse gas emissions), the hydrosphere (impact on surface and groundwater quality) and the lithosphere (Earth's crust upon which soils are developed). Soil systems also act as a receptacle that receives, retains, transforms and biodegrades organic and inorganic contaminants and helps maintain the environmental quality of biosphere.

What makes the soil in Alberta interesting?

From a remediation perspective, soil type, structure, texture and redox conditions impact the selection of remediation techniques, their performance and their implementation in the cleanup of contaminated sites.

If you could study soil anywhere in the world that you haven't already, where would it be and why?

I would like to study soils in arid and semi-arid regions of the world to see their behaviour in the sorption and transformation of contaminants.