Experimental Observations and Assessment of Landfill Leachate Bioremediation by Autochthonous Fungi Species and their Effective Geoactivities

Autochthonous fungi are potential successful agents in the process of bioremediation through their efficient adaptation to pollutant toxicity and competition with other microorganisms that are present in the leachate treatment plant. The leachate from municipal waste landfills was an important source of fungi. Even though some of these fungi have the potential to be human pathogens, such strains wh en used in biolo gical treatment approaches may serve as a possible tool for integrating the leachate bioremediation process because of the extracellular enzymes produced by fungal strains. In this study, the leachate sample was tested with regard to four parameters, including total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), pH, and the decolorization of the leachate sample by a number of indigenous species of fungi, which were observed by use of the culture techniques. The scanning electron microscope coupled with energy dispersive x-ray analysis, UV-spectrum, and reflected and transmitted polarizing light microscope were used in the research project to o bserve and assess the obtained data from the experimental work. The results indicated the various levels of efficiency of the isolated fungal strains in eliminating color, lowering TDS, EC, and pH through their geoactivities potential in metal biosorption and immobilization by biomineralization of new minerals in the growth environment and eventually reducing the metal bioavailability and toxicity.