A method of treatment of a contaminated material contaminated with an
organic compound. The method includes treating the contaminate with a
bioremediation step followed by a chemical oxidation step. The
bioremediation step includes contacting the contaminate with a microbial
consortium under conditions suitable for the consortium to mediate
solubilization or biodegradation of the organic compound or chemical
oxidation products thereof. The subsequent chemical oxidation step
includes treating the bioremediated contaminate with: a transition metal
in soluble form; a chelator of the transition metal, to form a transition
metal:chelator complex; an oxidizing agent that provides a reactive free
radical in the presence of the transition metal complex; and a buffering
compound to maintain the pH in a neutral range. The reactive free radical
initiates a chemical reaction with the organic compound to produce
reaction products of the organic compound.