Biodegradation of tannery effluent and its impact on seed germination of Oryza sativa

Abstract

<jats:p>Environmental pollution, especially of water bodies, is one of the major problems and it is increased day by day. The contamination of environment with various toxic metals is a serious threat for ecosystem and human health. Industrial effluents may contain toxic metals, harmful volatile compounds and several organic and inorganic compounds such as chromium, cadmium, mercury, arsenic and lead which are directly or indirectly discharged into the environment without adequate treatment. However, tannery industries are the major source of chromium contamination into the environment. Tanneries are typically characterized as pollution intensive industrial complexes which generate widely varying, high-strength wastewaters. The discharge of these toxic effluents has been a major loss from the ecological, social and economic perspective. There are many conventional physiochemical methods available for the removal of heavy metals from the tannery effluents that are highly expensive and require skilled techniques. However, microbial reduction of toxic chromium to non-toxic chromium by chromium resistance microorganism is the most pragmatic approach that offers an economical as well as eco-friendly process. Hence, this study examines the biodegradation of tannery effluent and its impacts on the germination of <jats:italic>Oryza sativa</jats:italic> seeds.</jats:p>