Role of Biotechnology in Treatment of Solid Waste

Waste management has become a major global concern. The rapid rise in the rate of population has increased the generation of waste at a tremendous pace. Improper disposal of agricultural, household, municipal and industrial wastes can pose a threat to the health of living beings and the environment. Industrial waste, in particular, is highly hazardous as it contains toxic chemicals and metals. Many methods of waste disposal have been adopted, but most of them produce various kinds of after-effects, therefore, biological methods have been adopted because of their eco-friendly and sustainable nature. Sustainable waste management aims to minimize the amount of waste generation. Waste is treated in a proper way, involving the steps such as segregation, recycling and reuse. Biotechnological methods such as composting, biodegradation of xenobiotic compounds and bioremediation have been tried. These methods have proved useful in treating waste in an eco-friendly way. More research studies need to be carried out to standardize the method for the proper treatment of waste so that environmental sustainability can be achieved. 

Keywords: Anaerobic degradation, Biogas, Bioremediation, Combustion, Composting, Fermentation, Incineration, Recycle, Reduce, Reuse, Xenobiotic.