Abstract
Bioremediation is applied to eliminate various contaminants, such as organic, inorganic or other pollutants from the environment. Environment worldwide is under great stress due to industrialization and human interfering on the limited natural resources. The release of chemicals pollution needs several techniques to treat some of these chemicals, but due to their cost, new technologies should be developing in order to create cost-effective and eco-friendly bioremediation technologies for environmental conversions. Bioremediation is an increasingly popular using microbial and algae strains for degrading waste contaminants. It is using of microorganisms and its enzymes to protect the environment from severe pollution. Bioremediation may be employed in order to eliminate specific contaminants, such as chlorinated pesticides or other pollutants from the environment. Microorganisms degrade the different pollutants in a natural environment but some modifications can be done to enhance its degradation efficiency at a faster rate in a limited time frame by using the genetically engineered microorganisms and microalgae. In this chapter, the role of the bacteria, fungi and algae in bioremediation of different environmental pollutants was highlighted.
TopMicroorganisms in general have effective ability to rapidly multiply and increase in huge numbers when be inoculated to decontaminate polluted area, when compared with chemical means. Antizar-Ladislao, Spanova, Beck, & Russell, (2008) indicated that microorganisms possess efficient enzymatic pathways able to eliminate or modify different pollutants. Moreover, different microorganisms could be added to polluted area (called inoculation) to enhance biodegradation rate. The inoculums may be a mixture of nonindigenous microbes from various polluted sites (specially selected and cultivated for its various pollutant degrading capabilities) or it may be a mixture of microbes selected from the site to depolluted or mass-cultured in the laboratory. Addition of nutrients along with inoculated process shows enhanced results for bioremediation (Boopathy, 2000).
This chapter deals with the significance of bioremediation, as it plays crucial role in the restoration of degraded land which is an important conservation effort for sustainable development and environmental management. The current chapter will summarize the available information on various attributes of microbial utilization for bioremediation. The gathered information is valuable to design reactors for contaminants elimination at regional and national levels.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Bacterial Bioremediation: It includes the bioremediation or biodegradation of contaminants and hazardous pollutants in the environment using bacteria.
Fungal Bioremediation: It is the bioremediation or biodegradation of contaminants and hazardous pollutants in the environment using fungi.
Microbial Consortium: Two or more microbial groups living symbiotically.
Yeast Bioremediation: It refers to the bioremediation or biodegradation of contaminants and hazardous pollutants in the environment using yeast.
Genetically Engineered Microorganisms: These are the microorganisms which genetic makeup has been changed through biotechnology process.
Dye Decolourization: It is a process of colour removal from the waste or effluents by means of physic-chemical and biological mechanisms (bioaccumulation, biosorption, and biodegradation).
Algal Bioremediation: It is the use of algae to remove pollutants from the environment or to convert them into harmless form.
Azo dye: It is the largest class of synthetic dyes.
PAH: It is a group of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.