Bioremediation of Acetochlor in Soil and Water Systems by Cyanobacterial Mat

This study investigated the bioremediation of organic pollution in soil and water systems by cyanobacterial mats collected from Wadi Gaza. Acetochlor, a model compound of herbicide, was used as a standard organic pollutant. Various concentrations of acetochlor were injected in soil and water samples pre-treated with cyanobacterial mat for several periods of time. Percentage of growth of wheat as a test plant was taken as indicator of bioremediation of acetochlor. Results showed that acetochlor was degraded in both soil and water systems. Degradation was much faster in the water system than in the soil system. Concentrations of acetochlor above the field rate did not affect the bioremediation process in the water system whereas it did in soil pots. Furthermore, bioremediation in water system was nearly completed in 15 days whereas it did not reach high percentage in the soil system. These encouraging results are new contribution in field of bioremediation of pesticide by cyanobacterial mats and suggest that application of cyanobacterial mat could be a fast and suitable methodology for bioremediation of organic pollutant in the ecosystem.