Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons from Petroleum Oil Industry Activities: Effect on Human Health and Their Biodegradation

Abstract

Nowadays pollution control and abatement are critical issues faced by environmental scientists due to rapid industrialization. Petroleum industry is one of the major industries which release hydrocarbon pollutants in environment. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are the priority pollutants which are released into the environment by exploration activities of petroleum industries. The indiscriminate accumulation of petroleum hydrocarbon pollutants can be hazardous to the human life and aquatic biota. Due to toxicity of these pollutants, establishing efficient and environment-friendly method to degrade and detoxify these pollutants is an important research challenge. Various physiochemical methods are applied all over the world to remediate of petroleum hydrocarbon pollutants. Bioremediation technique has been developed for treatment of crude oil pollutants using biological agents like bacteria, fungi, algae, and plants. Applications of certain microorganisms have gained importance in the field of applied environmental microbiology. The application of microbes to degrade pollutants is getting attention due to its environmental and economic benefits. They can be used to change bioavailability and toxicity of petroleum hydrocarbons present in polluted soil and aqueous environment. This paper explores hydrocarbons present in petroleum crude. The effect of petroleum hydrocarbon pollutants on human health and environment is also discussed. This chapter also explains microbial degradation of these pollutants.