Bioremediation is a set of methods that exploit the metabolic capabilities of microorganisms, plants, or their enzymes to transform, detoxify, or remove environmental contaminants from soil, water, sediments, or air. Approaches include intrinsic bioremediation, where indigenous microbes degrade pollutants without intervention, and engineered strategies such as biostimulation (addition of nutrients or electron acceptors) and bioaugmentation (introduction of selected strains or consortia). Target contaminants commonly include hydrocarbons, chlorinated solvents, pesticides, heavy metals (via transformation or immobilization), and emerging pollutants, with process design guided by site-specific geochemistry, microbial ecology, and kinetic constraints to achieve regulatory cleanup endpoints.
By converting plastic waste into a microbe-friendly food source, scientists have built an upcycling pipeline that turns the waste into a variety of useful products. The findings are detailed in the journal Nature Sustainability.
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 4, 2026
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Scientists have developed a new edge-of-field water-treatment system that reduces the load of excess nutrients washing into waterways from farm drainage systems. Their method combines a woodchip bioreactor with a two-step ...
Biotechnology
Feb 26, 2026
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20
Wastewater contains untapped resources that, if reclaimed, could power agriculture, global sanitation, and its own treatment to help us meet UN SDG goals, according to a review published in Frontiers in Science.
Cell & Microbiology
Feb 24, 2026
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A team of researchers has demonstrated how biological systems could transform the way sustainable urban drainage systems manage polluted soils, pointing to a future in which urban infrastructure is greener, cheaper and more ...
Environment
Feb 10, 2026
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13
A University of Missouri researcher is pioneering an innovative solution to remove tiny bits of plastic pollution from our water. Mizzou's Susie Dai recently applied a revolutionary strain of algae toward capturing and removing ...
Biotechnology
Feb 2, 2026
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383
Cold spray whipped off the ropes as a diesel engine throbbed in the background. One by one, empty shellfish pots came over the side of the fishing boat, occasionally containing the remnants of crab and lobster claws and carapaces. ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 31, 2026
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49
Wildfire causes most living things to flee or die, but some fungi thrive afterward, even feasting on charred remains. New University of California, Riverside research finds the secret to post-fire flourishing hidden in their ...
Ecology
Jan 29, 2026
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New findings shed light on the mechanisms behind a natural purification process and identify the key microbial "teammates" that enable mosses to remove metals from water. A promising moss species was discovered in abandoned ...
Ecology
Dec 15, 2025
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Billions of alkaline-loving microbes could offer a new way to protect nuclear waste buried deep underground. This approach overcomes the limitations of current cement barriers, which can crack or break down over time.
Today's high-tech electronics and green energy technologies would not function without rare earth elements (REEs). These 17 metals possess unique properties essential to creating items like the phosphors that illuminate our ...
Bio & Medicine
Nov 13, 2025
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