Bioremediation and detoxification of xenobiotic organic compounds in landfill leachate by pseudomonas sp. ISTDF1

Increase in municipal solid waste (MSW) production has been a consequence of rapid population growth and urbanization in the past decade. It is startling to know that presently Delhi itself generates 8000 tonnes/day of MSW and to make the situation worse, it is projected to rise to 17,000-25,000 tonnes/day by the year 2021 (Talyan et al., 2008). The most commonly employed method for MSW management is landfill disposal. Landfill requires a close environmental engineering surveillance in its design and operation, as it is likely to generate leachate which would potentially contaminate nearby ground water and surface water (Mor et al., 2006). In spite of being economically viable, generation of heavily polluted leachate constitutes a major drawback of landfills. In the absence of leachate and landfill gas collection systems, these landfills are a major source of groundwater contamination and air pollution, including the generation of greenhouse gases (Talyan et al., 2008; Gardner et al., 1993).