Uses of Bacteria in Bioremediation

Bioremediation has been defined as a “biological response to environmental abuse” (1 ) This definition serves to distinguish between the use of microorganisms to remediate contaminated sites and their application in biotreatment/biorecycle processes designed to reduce organic and inorganic contaminant emissions at source. This chapter will focus on the former while recognizing that biological treatment processes currently play a major role in preventing and reducing the extent of organic and inorganic environmental contamination from the industrial, agricultural, and municipal sectors Bioremediation is concerned with the biological restoration of historically contaminated sites and with the cleanup of areas contaminated in more recent times, either accidentally or incidentally, as a result of the production, storage, transport, and use of organic and inorganic chemicals (1 ,2 ). Much of our inherited legacy of environmental contamination can be traced back to industrial, municipal, and military waste management practices that advocated disposal rather than treatment (1 ,3 ). In many cases, the degree of site contamination was exacerbated by the decline in competitiveness of an industry (e.g., coal gas manufacture) or by the nonexistence or ineffective enforcement of environmental protection legislation.