Bioremediation of Pesticides and Metals, A Discussion about Different Strategies using Actinobacteria

Abstract

Highly toxic compounds have been released into the environment by direct or indirect inputs over a long time. With the scope of reducing the concentration and toxicity of these chemicals, eco-friendly techniques have emerged for cleaning up polluted sites using plants and/or microbial species. This approach, known as bioremediation,is considered less invasive compared to conventional physicochemical techniques (Kidd et al. 2009).Pesticides are probably the most widely used and released chemicals inthe world. The disposal of obsolete pesticide stocks has resulted in many longterm contaminated sites in Latin America, many of which are currently illegal.Metal contamination is another environmental issue of current concern. Pollutedareas can be decontaminated using multiple in situ and ex situ approaches; however,in case of metal contamination, only a few techniques can be used because of the immutable and generally immobile nature of metals (Dávila Costa et al. 2011a,b). A wide range of human activities such as industrial, agriculture, municipal landfill, and sewage disposal, significantly contribute to increase metal concentrations at levels higher than those established as background (Fernández et al. 2014).