Some activities in the oil industry pose environmental challenges especially oil spillage which have been effectively handled by microbes. Petroleum hydrocarbons including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are one of the major contaminants in the environment. They are released into the environment either through natural process or by anthropogenic activities, later contributing the major proportion of pollution.
Ship - wreak activities in the coastal areas massively pollute the marine ecosystem and can directly affect the native microflora and fauna. The impact of this pollution is highest due to the presence of toxic components of crude oil. However, among these pollutants, degradation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons is of major concern, due to their ubiquity, bio accumulation potential, toxicity, mutagenicity with a few being carcinogenic in nature.
Bioremediation has therefore provided an essential alternative for the clean -up of sites contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbon and its associated products. The metabolic activities of microbes in a diverse range of substrate has been employed in the degradation of crude oil/ hydrocarbon in impacted environments. They do so by breaking down the oil components into non toxic end products CO2 and H2O.
waste generated from refineries can also be treated using microorganisms. Through the process of bioremediation which involves the introduction of proven microbes with efficient degradation capability and nutrients, into a polluted ecosystem, microorganisms have been able to destroy, transform or immobilize environmental contaminants to protect potential sensitive receptors such as water bodies,soil.
References:
Patel, A. B, Mahala, K, Jain, K, and Madamwar, D. (2018). Development of mixed bacterial culture DAK11 capable of degrading mixture of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
