MMIJ Annual Meeting

Environmental pollution from high-temperature industrial processes often releases toxic and persistent polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), exacerbating ecological and human health risks. Often, microbial consortia which thrive in high-pollutant environments are known to perform effectively as bioremediating agents for these harmful substances. This study examines PAH pollution levels and their relationship with environmental factors within the heavily polluted Byrnihat Industrial Clusters (BIC) in India, where effluents pose risks to both the local community and the downstream ecosystem. The study also explores the potential of PAH-degrading microorganisms in surface sediments. The concentrations of ∑16-PAHs ranged from 904.33 µg/kg to 30,082.21 µg/kg dried weight within the surface soils, and 2.96 µg/L to 27.49 µg/L in the water samples collected from 16 stations within the BIC. Among the 16 PAHs, Naphthalene is the most abundant, and 4 to 5-ring PAH dominate both surface soils and water. Diagnostic ratio reveals that most of the sources are pyogenic in nature. Correlation analysis reveals a positive correlation between environmental parameters such as pH, DO, BOD, COD, Electrical Conductivity, nitrate, and total coliform (maximum MPN/100ml of 9.4x10⁴), with most of them exceeding the environmental standards. Additionally, the microbial DNA from the study areas were extracted for subsequent 16S rDNA sequencing, and the details will be presented at the conference. These preliminary findings suggest that there can be potential PAH degrading consortia indigenously, which could pave the way for further biodegradation studies.