Bioremediation is a waste
management technique that involves the use of organisms to remove or neutralize
pollutants from a contaminated site. Technologies can be generally classified
as in situ or ex situ. In situ bioremediation involves treating the
contaminated material at the site, while ex situ involves the removal of the
contaminated material to be treated elsewhere. Bioremediation may occur on its
own (natural attenuation or intrinsic bioremediation) or may only effectively
occur through the addition of fertilizers, oxygen, etc., that help encourage
the growth of the pollution-eating microbes within the medium. However, not all
contaminants are easily treated by bioremediation using microorganisms.
Phytoremediation is useful in these circumstances because natural plants or
transgenic plants are able to bioaccumulate these toxins in their above-ground
parts, which are then harvested for removal.
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In-situ bioremediation
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Ex-situ bioremediation
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Phytoremediation
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Biodegradation
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Mycoremediation