SUMMARY
Pollution in marine environment due to heavier petroleum products such as high-speeddiesel is known to take from days to months for complete natural remediation owing to its lowvolatility. For the survival of marine flora and fauna, it is important to control pollution causedby such recalcitrant and xenobiotic substances. Several petroleum hydrocarbons found in natureare toxic and recalcitrant. Therefore, pollution due to high-speed diesel is a cause of concern.The natural dispersion of high-speed diesel, a slow process, is attributed to an overall combinedeffect of physico-chemical and biological processes which take months for complete dispersion.History of marine oil spill bioremediation indicates limited laboratory studies. But experiencesfrom various oil spill management and field trials indicate important role of bioremediation, where,biodegradation of hydrocarbons through microbial mediators plays a major role in pollutant oildispersion. These microbial mediators such as bioemulsifiers and fimbrae, help in emulsification,dispersion, allowing attachment of bacteria to oil layers, followed by substrate-specific enzymaticbiodegradation in water.