Ecology and Environment

• MCB 425 studies Environmental Microbiology

Course Outline

• Unit I: Environmental Pollution and Degradation
• Unit II: Air Pollutants and Pollution
• Unit III: Soil Pollutants and Pollution
• Unit IV: Impact Assessment of Microbial Contaminants; Air
• Unit V: Impact Assessment of Microbial Contaminants; Soil
• Unit VI: Wastes Disposal and Management
• Unit VII: Domestic Wastes and Waste Water Treatment
• Unit VIII: Principles and Standards of Sanitary Water Quality
• Unit IX: Disease Transmission by Water

Introduction

• Environmental Microbiology examines microorganisms and their physical/chemical environmental influences.
• Environments include air, water, and soil.
• Suitable environmental conditions are key for living organisms' proliferation and survival.
• Environmental issues pose a global threat affecting society's environment.
• The course aims to study pollutants, pollution, contamination, environmental impact, water-related diseases, and waste management.

Learning Objectives

• Familiarization with environmental pollution and degradation concepts.
• Differentiation between indigenous and incidental microbes in various environments like air, soil, and water.
• Explanation of specific microbial pollutants across different environments, for example, air and soil.
• Determination of methods for assessing the impact of microbial contaminants on different environments like air, soil, and water.
• Elaboration on waste disposal and management methods.
• Identification procedures for water and sewage treatment.
• Elaboration of principles and standards for sanitary water quality.
• Evaluation of water quality using Biological and Chemical Oxygen Demand (BOD and COD).
• Distinction between types of water-related diseases along with determination of varying methods of different disease transmission by water.

UNIT I: ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION AND DEGRADATION

Learning Objectives:

• Understand and identify the meaning of an "environment" by providing examples.
• To define the concept of both environmental degradation and pollution.

Learning Outcomes:

• The student will be able to define environment and give examples of such
• Familiarization with the concepts of both environmental degradation and pollution

Environment

• It comprises all living and non-living surroundings needed for an organism's life and sustainability.
• Includes air, water, soil, and areas inhabited by microbes.
• Environments are components of ecosystems.
• Ecosystem: Is a community of microorganisms with their physical and chemical environment, functioning as an ecological unit.
• Major environmental requirement: Non-living components must enable living components to thrive.

Ecosphere

• Also know as biosphere, embodies all living organisms on Earth and their abiotic surroundings.
• Divided into: atmosphere, hydrosphere & lithosphere (litho-ecosphere) describing where living things exist in air, water, and soil.

Microorganisms

• Microbes resides within the ecosphere's habitats
• Habitat is part of the broader ecological niche, including where an organism lives and what it does.
• Niche: Organism's functional role within an ecosystem.

Microorganisms Categories

• Microorganisms can be classified into autochthonous or allochthonous.
• Autochthonous microbes: Always present, adapt to environmental changes (nutrient availability, seasonal variations).
• Allochthonous microbes: Temporarily inhabit, multiply in favorable conditions, disappear when unfavorable.

Life On Earth

• Earth life relies on optimal environmental conditions.
• Factors that can influence living organisms and may be both natural (e.g., plant toxins) and human-made (e.g., synthesis by-products).

Environmental Pollution

• Encompasses the introduction of undesirable substances into an environment thereby harming living organisms.
• Substances are called pollutants.
• Pollution occurs when the environment cannot absorb and neutralize toxic byproducts from human activities and pollutants naturally.
• Four major types of pollution are; air, water, land/soil, and noise pollution.
• Pollutants: Inorganic (heavy metals), organic (pesticides, PAHs), fertilizers, industrial by-products, inert compounds (dust, aerosols), toxic micro-elements.
• Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP): Pollutants that remain for a long period in the environment.

Bioaccumulation

• Pollutants e.g., toxic chemicals/pesticides increase in concentration in an organism’s tissues or system such as a human.
• Occurs through air, water, food consumption, or skin contact.

Biomagnification

• Certain chemical substances or toxins build up at higher levels of a food chain, transferring toxins from one organism to another at different levels.
• Substances: Heavy metals, mercury, toxins. They tend to increase/accumulate up the food chain.

Bioaccumulation

• Toxic chemicals accumulate in the tissue of a specific organism.
• A substance's concentration increases is increases.
• Pollutant levels grow in an organism.
• Occurs within a specific trophic level.
• Example: Buildup of toxic elements in human bodies from environmental exposure.

Biomagnification

• A toxic chemical's concentration increases up the food chain.
• The concentration increases.
• Pollutant levels grow as they move up.
• Occurs between different trophic levels.
• Example: Pollutant transfer from plants to herbivores and then to carnivores.

Environmental Degradation

• Happens when environment becomes unusable, disturbing/changing the development of organisms and their communities.
• Creates unfavorable conditions limiting organism growth.
• Environmental Degradation: Occurs via depleted resources (air, soil, eater), ecosystem destruction, extinctions.
• Environmental Degradation involves progressive contamination, over-exploitation, and eventual destruction.

Atmospheric degradation

• Air pollution by particles, depletion in ozone layer

Water degradation

• Dumping wastes in water bodies; industrial or other garbage

Soil and land Degradation

• Soil erosion, agricultural practices, fertilizers/pesticides, landfill leaks, mining, deforestation.

Factors of Environmental degradation are

• Physical: Electromagnetic radiation, noise, thermal
• Biological: Infectious agents, parasites, decay products harming organisms.

Atmospheric changes

• Environmental degradation can alter natural processes including water cycle, regular animal and plant activities

Impact of Environmental degradation on human Health

• Can result in water scarcity, decreased food/water quality which can lead to sickness, diseases, and deaths

Natural Resources Scaricity

• Environmental degradation can cause shortages of food crops, water, arable land, medicinal plants.

UNIT II: Air Pollutants and Pollution

• Air is essential for life.
• Humans consume 6-13 cubic meters of air daily.
• Trace airborne substances can adversely affect health.
• Any chemical, biological or physical factor is toxic if harmful.

Air Microflora

• Bioaerosols: Are living organisms emitted in the air.
• Microorganisms present in the air as bioaerosols as vegetative cells, fungal or bacterial spores, viruses, algae, and protozoa cysts.
• Bacterial cells/fragments, fungal spores, microbial by-products may be components of bio-aerosols.

Air microflora

• It's not autochthonous but allochthonous populations transported from terrestrial and aquatic habitats into the atmosphere.
• Example: Air microbes at 300-1000 ft. originated from soils/leaves attached to dust, dispersed by wind.
• Air microflora are of two types outdoor and indoor microflora.

Outdoor microflora

• It comprises Aspergillus, Phytophthora, Alternaria, Erysiphae, basidiospores, ascospores, yeasts, Candida, mold fragments.
• Bacterial genera include Clostridium, Corynebacteria, Achromobacter, Micrococcus, Sarcina, and Bacillus.
• Its numbers and varieties depend on human population and activities.

Indoor microflora

• It comprises Penicillium and Aspergillus; bacterial genera Bacillus, Staphylococcus, and Clostridium.
• Sources: Furnishings and materials, fungal contamination in walls/ceilings via spores, cell fragments, wall openings.

Air Pollution

• Is the presence of atmosphere chemicals harmful to health/environment; introducing substances with poisonous effects.
• These substances are suspended as particles called aerosols, emitted into the atmosphere.

Air Pollutants Types

• Primary pollutants/aerosols: Natural events and human activities.
• Secondary pollutants/aerosols: Interaction or primary pollutants with normal air components.

Sources of air pollution

• Energy production, heating, industrialization, transportation, agriculture.

Air Pollutants

• Carbon Oxides:
• Sources; incomplete fossil fuel combustion from transportation, industry, home heating, and more.
• Carbon Dioxide:
• An important greenhouse gas
• Carbon Monoxide (CO):
• It’s the most abundant pollutant affecting human health, and may cause problems to certain demographics
• Sulfur oxides:
• Mainly SO2 from coal combustion.
• Released SO2 comes from; industrial process, and transportation
• Sulfur dioxide:
• Can react with gases in the environment to create sulfuric acid.
• Exposure to SO2 causes: Impaired respiratory function and increased mortality.

Nitrogen oxides

• N0 (nitric oxide) & NO2 (nitrogen dioxide).
• Sources; motor vehicles & industry, burning of fossil fuels.
• Can react with other gases in the environment to form nitric acid.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

• VOCs/aerosols or dust (hydrocarbons) - methane, benzene, propane, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
• Source motor: vehicles (evaporation from gas tanks), industry, & Various household products.
• High VOC concentrations cause: Eye and respiratory irritation, headaches, dizziness, visual disorders/memory impairment.

Suspended Particulate Matter

• It comprises of: Solid particles and liquid droplets which also includes dust, soot, asbestos, pesticides, and more.
• Sources: power plants, iron/steel mills, land clearing, highway construction, mining.
• Acts as respiratory irritants, carcinogens, and aggravate heart/respiratory diseases.

Toxic Compounds

• Trace amounts of at least 600 toxic substances are produced.
• Such toxic substances are produced by certain human activities such as lead, mercury, and more
• Mercury:
• Mercury is an element that occurs naturally in the earth's cruse, and can be converted to its most toxic form.

Bioaccumulation of Mercury

• Wildlife at the top of the food chain are consequently exposed to elevated amounts of methyl mercury through the contaminated fish they consume
• Is called biomagnification
• Source of mercury comes from burning coal and the waste coming from medical wastes.

Photochemical Oxidants

• Main component is ozone.
• Ozone is a daytime problem in summer due to sunlight's formation role.
• Hydrocarbons/nitrogen oxide in sunlight with little air movement leads to Ozone generation.
• These compounds are produced by cars, trucks, factories which combine with sunlight, producing ozone.

Smog

• Forms from nitrogen oxides, volatile compounds and sunlight.
• Complex of gases that exist more common in cities with sunny and dry climates.

Effects of Air Pollution on Human Health

• Much evidence links air pollutants to respiratory and other diseases.
• Pulmonary irritation and impaired lung function.
• Chronic bronchitis: airways inflamed lungs filled with mucus, coughing, shortness of breath & fatigue.
• Emphysema: Long disease resulted from air sac damage.
• Lung damage is characterized by breathlessness, coughing and fatigue.
• Liver cancer: Aflatoxin by Aspergillus flavus, kidney disease by ochratoxin from Aspergillus/Penicillium.
• Can occur by inhalation in the grain processing industry and peanut.
• Systemic toxicity: Heavy metals exposure including lead and mercury harms reproductive, neurological/respiratory systems.
• Diseases: Increased susceptibility to asthma, pneumonia, viral diseases
• Other concerns: Short-term exposure can cause headaches, nausea, dizziness.

Effects of Air Pollution

• Wildlife is equally harmed by pollution.
• Plants damaged: By ozone and acid leading to damages including weakened pine needles, suppressed growth and damaged leaves.

Pollution-Effects on Microorganisms and Microbial Activity in the Environment

• Microorganisms transform: pollutants
• They have wide which degrade a variety of compounds.
• Pollutants are cellular poisons, thus they affect cellular growth.
• Microbial activity cycles affect element cycling, with transformations (nitrogen fixation, and more) being impaired by pollutant impact.
• Microbes can use pollutants as nutrients, this stimulates the growth of microbial biomass.
• Increase in bacterial populations following pollution is an indicator e.g coliform.

Disturbance impact

• Negative disturbance: Pollutant inhibits process
• Positive: enhances impact
• Disturbance impact

Acid Rain

• Is a precipitation that contains acid components.
• Acid rain is created when sulfur dioxide combines with air and water.
• Major NOx and SO2 sources is the burning of fuels

Acid transport

• Prevailing winds transport compounds across state/national borders.

Acid Deposition Effects

• It acidifies lakes and streams.
• Acid rain causes a cascade of effects on fish
• Damages trees and decays building materials and paints

Controlling the Disasters

• Clean smoke stacks and exhaust pipes
• Lower SO2 and NOx Emissions

Alternative energy sources

• Use is not popular and usually sound

Global Warming

• Global warming is because of carbon dioxide which increases the planet, there for fossil fuels are burnt, trees are cut for pastures

Effects of Warmer food production

• Reductions in biodiversity

Effects on the sea level

• It increases ocean water
• More Extreme weather

Threats of human health

• As temperature increase disease-carrying mosquitoes and rodents move to new Areas
• 65% people infected world's infection increase by 20%

Approached to slowing Global Warming

• By cutting fossil fuels
• Car Makers could make cars more efficient
• Improve Energy efficiency

Reduce Deforestation and plant trees

• Terrestrial ecosystem gives to absorb and store Carbon Dioxide
• By encouraging population control.

UNIT III: Soil pollutants and pollution

Learning Objectives

• The terms which soil pollution covers will be more familiar
• The causes and the sources of soil pollution will be discussed as well

Soil Degradation

• Pertains to adding substances to soil with negative physical, chemical, or biological impacts.
• It reduces soil production by building of toxic compounds.
• Salts or Radioactive agents in soil and harms growth

Pollution can also be defined as contamination levels which exceeds natural levels.

• This is because low levels of the substances naturally occurs in the land
• Sources of degradation comes from industrial waste

Degradation with Industrial Waste

• It has pollution levels which contaminates the soil layer
• Soil fertility is influenced by mining of minerals from earth or extraction
• Waste categories such as: Metallurgy, non and food processing exist. The contaminants will be dirt, gravel, oil, lumber, vegetables, and more which causes more environmental issues.

Agriculture

• Affects the fertility of the soil because the long term usage of fertilizers and pesticides can lead to degradation

Pesticides

• Destroys pests
• And effects the enzyme production by soil

Fertilizers and Manures

• Applied at the wrong time can pollute
• Destroyes equilibrium also
• Affects acidity

Radioactive Waste

• Comes from a natural source and its useless so wastes increase
• Nuclear reactors/plant all produce
• A simple waste

Pollution for Urban Activities

• Results in high pollution
• Construction which lead to erosion is the cause of this
• From construction there is not proper removal of waste
• Household waste decompose

Effects on the environment of pollution

• Soil pollution can also be known as harming to the ecosystem

It can be the release of toxins and contamination which seeps in groundwater.

Effect by humans is eating and other sources.

Reduces ability of humans to cope

Measures

• Reduce Use of Chemical Fertilizers
• Harmful excess causes soil harm

It can be said that it affects pH levels of soil and organic bacteria are affected.

• Reforestation and proper waste help
• Proper waste such as recycle and reuse

UNIT IV: IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF MICROBIAL CONTAMINANTS: AIR

• Differentiate passive/active air sampling
• Assess microbial air contaminants

Poor indoor qualities

• Leads to both immediate and long term issues
• Sick building syndrome is connected to headaches, dizziness and fatigue's long term.
• Exposure to microbs leads to toxicity and allergies

With air sampling the evaluation with high contaminants is possible

• Through that risk is detected and there is a wide range of sampling done

Passive Sampling

• agar settle plates
• Done by forces
• The optimum which is about 30-100 is the right sample to take
• In hospital the time will be between 10-60
• Incubate the plates between different degrees or depending on mold types
• Bacteria will be counted

The passive method can be determined as contamination with IMA also known as Index of microbial air contamination

Advantages

• Sedimentation gives comparable results/No instrumental
• Uninfluenced

It has its own set risk assessments

Disadvantages

• Only the particles volume can only be measured
• Used medium in some circumstances will affected bacterial growth

Active Sampling

It is based on sampling techniques such as such as filtration, impingement, impaction, and centrifugation, each with its own sets of advantages and limitations.

• This collects airborne microorganisms present in inhalable dust in the indoor

The sampler has help draw amounts of air

• Is the amount of Colony used
• There are active samplers

Disadvantage

• Decline of viability and pollution

B:Enumeration

Diverse methodologies are used in detecting

• Microscopic methods
• Cuture method
• Cominations

The method comes with either letting the air through

• Or coating stuff

Microscopy

• It has all microbes given in a number
• Detection of dead and live organisms
• But has drawing as it cannot find out species

Culture Methods

• Transferring air can cause optimal air
• Count units and also may contain more microbes
• Medium is an important recourse

Combination of both

Testing viruses can develop into different stages which requires cells or bactieral to test bacteria phages

Species testing is meticulous

Control Microorganisms

• There are loads of these in indoor environment
• And can reduce number

Filtration

• Producing sterile aids
• All air separation can happen

Can also have Laminar Air Flow with HEPA

Bactericidal Aerosols can be implemented

Ultra Violet Radiation also works.

UNIT V: IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF MICROBIAL CONTAMINANTS: SOIL

Soil Monitoring

• The goal that substance must address soil to effect potential and also air and water too.

Understanding chemicals

• Risk can be a factor which assess humans with impact
• Pollution shows
• Harm with testing for different pollutants

Methods come from Biosensors, Biomarkers too.

Bioassy

• Species are tested but its measuring potential
• Microbial bioassys are toxicity
• Effects from test shows changes and also subdivide into other changes
• Time exposure to test effects result

Tests such as EC50,LC50 happen.

Testing for population may happen too

Examples testing happens with Bacteria, Algae, and more.

Assessment of Soil Microbs

• Bacterial pathogens goes through water irrigation
• Public and health issues direct soil with contaminations.
• Relations establish

UNIT VI: WASTES DISPOSAL AND MANAGEMENT

• Understanding qualities leads effective solid waste management and strategies

Objectives

• Identifying types of waste
• Under effective approach

Waste is defined as material left over after competition

Forms also depend with liquids, hazardous and gases

• Properties are biodegradable or not

Solid wastes are unwanted materials produced by many Waste from domestic and other sources may be Municipal, Industrial or Biomedical

All waste is generated in our community

This type can be garbage trash also

• Hazardous waste are property, such as batteries
• Biomedical known has solid waste
• Solid wastes such as humans animals

It is determined through

• Types of waste
• Sources of waste
• Transport

Main components are generated storage or disposal

• If waste is stored where it can reach its owner there for the storing in family pits is a method

Collection refers to how its picked up, or transported

Transportation how is its taken out

Disposing consist of

• Lands fills which needs excavation, soil needs to be a managed
• Has a intensive manage if there is vegetable waste this is advantage.

Burning waste reduced some however produces smog

• Recycling is cheaper and works well

UNIT VII: DOMESTIC WASTES AND WASTEWATER TREATMENT

Learning objectives

• To give you a concept and testing of such as
• Discuss the purpose and to identify the stages

Wastewater is water affected in quality

Waste can be liquids used to clean

• It has fecal matter and grey water
• Which is bathing and more

People weight from poop

• The sewage and water are the same
• Nutrients and solid that are organic are mixed
• Organic water and strength is determined by three
• Organic water and strength is determined by three

TOC or Total Organic Carbon refers to compound found there. It uses heat with with heat and analyzer