The world needs clean water, and more and more, we’re pulling it from the oceans, desalinating it and drinking it. But what to do with the salty brine left behind? Research engineer Damian Palin proposes an idea: Mine it for other minerals we need, with the help of some collaborative metal-munching bacteria. Palin is developing a way to use bacteria to biologically ‘mine’ minerals from water – specifically out of the brine left over from the desalination process. He has long been fascinated by the process of biomineralisation, with particular attention on the mechanisms involved for mineral precipitation. At the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (in collaboration with Nanyang Technical University, Singapore), Palin conducts experiments to assess the ability of microorganisms to mine selected minerals out of seawater desalination brine. This study was based on compelling and burgeoning evidence from the field of geomicrobiology, which shows the ubiquitous role that microorganisms play in the cycling of minerals on the planet.