Microbial Potential in Efficient Remediation of Various Environmental Anthropogenic Pollutants

The higher stability and complexity of xenobiotic recalcitrant compounds are the main reasons for all significant hazards. However, biological remediation is among the most efficient strategies, which can be implemented using microbes (bacteria, yeast, mold, algae) either in single pure culture or in mixed cultures (i.e., consortia). Microbial remediation can be carried out by introducing efficient microorganisms—whether native (autochthonous), non-native (allochthonous), or genetically modified—into contaminated sites, or by injecting nutrients and oxygen to stimulate their activity and enhance pollutant removal. This chapter discusses various methods for microbial remediation of inorganic pollutants. In addition, it extensively focuses on different strategies followed by different microbial taxa, both prokaryotic and eukaryotic, under various aeration conditions (i.e., aerobic and anaerobic) to manipulate and mitigate the toxicity of different biological and inorganic contaminants. Finally, it sheds light on recent tools to speed up the process, including OMICs approaches and nanotechnology.