Mycoremediation of Agricultural Soil: Bioprospection for Sustainable Development

Abstract

Contamination of water, air, and soil by hazardous toxic substances is one of the major problems faced all over the world. The role of microorganism in the detoxification of soil and environment is distinct and well known. Mycoremediation is an attractive technology in which fungi are used to break down or degrade hazardous toxic substances into less toxic or nontoxic forms. Fungi mostly used as mycoremediator are Pleurotus ostreatus, Rhizopus arrhizus, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, P. sordida, Trametes hirsuta, T. versicolor, Lentinus tigrinus, L. edodes, etc. Its application falls into two categories: in situ and ex situ. The in situ methods treat the contaminated soil in the location in which it is found, whereas ex situ processes require excavation of contaminated soil before they can be put to bioremediation. The present waste disposal and treatment method does not seem to solve the problem of environmental degradation and soil depletion very effectively. Therefore, there is a need to seek alternative means of remediating the contaminants for sustainable development. Hence, in such a situation, mycoremediation is advisable to detoxify the polluted soil and environment with less use of chemicals, energy, and time. However, extensive studies are needed for exploration of fungi as a potential mycoremediator in order to attain agricultural sustainability.