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Oil Spill Removal by Mycoremediation

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Microbial Action on Hydrocarbons

Abstract

Oil spills are always harmful, whether accidental or deliberate as it contains hydrocarbons which are carcinogenic and also cause great damage to marine ecosystem disturbing its food chain and hence a threat to entire marine community. Many chemical and physical methods are used to remove the spilled oil of ocean floor, each having some drawbacks. Bioremediation has a promising future in oil spill removal in which indigenous or exogenous microbes are used to clean the oil spill. These microbes are mostly fungi, bacteria, and yeasts, which are already present in the water. Otherwise not dividing actively, during spillage these proliferate quickly and eat up the hydrocarbons which are essential for their growth producing ultimate end products – carbon dioxide and water. Though not in abundance in marine ecosystem, fungi are found to be better degrader of hydrocarbon than other microbes, and its usage to clean up oil spills is burgeoning. This chapter generally emphasizes on marine fungi, and its role in degrading crude oil components as the oceans is the largest and ultimate receptors of hydrocarbon pollutants.

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Acknowledgment

Rajeev Kumar is thankful to DST, SERB/F/8171/2015-16 as well as UGC (F. No. 194-2/2016 IC) for providing financial support. Ms. Ashpreet Kuar is also thankful to the Department of Environment Studies, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India for providing necessary assistance to complete this chapter.

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  1. Department of Environment Studies, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India

    Rajeev Kumar & Ashpreet Kaur

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  1. Rajeev Kumar
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  2. Ashpreet Kaur
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Correspondence to Rajeev Kumar .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Himalayan School of Biosciences, Swami Rama Himalayan University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India

    Vivek Kumar

  2. Centre for Life Sciences, Central University of Jharkhand, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India

    Manoj Kumar

  3. Amity Institute of Microbial Technology, Amity University, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Ram Prasad

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Kumar, R., Kaur, A. (2018). Oil Spill Removal by Mycoremediation. In: Kumar, V., Kumar, M., Prasad, R. (eds) Microbial Action on Hydrocarbons. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-1840-5_20

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