Ex-situ mycoremediation of petroleum polluted soils in Ogoniland, Nigeria

The study investigated the mycoremediation oil-polluted soil from Ogoniland (at the B-dere/Nabem community).The mushroom, Pleurotus tuberregium was exposed to this soil as principal remediation component.While the fungus grew undisturbed, weeds were also allowed to grow from soil seed bank.Dominant weeds identified in the study include Mariscus sp, Pepperomia pellucida, Synedrella nodiflora, Cyperus sp., and Oldenlandia corymbosa. Survival and growth of microorganisms in the polluted soils were monitored.Bacterial species identified were Escherichia coli, Micrococcus varians, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, P. vulgaris, Bacillus pumilis, Clostridum sp., Klebsiellasp., andAzotobacter sp. The fungi species included Mucormucedo, Aspergillus sp., Penicillin sp., Rhizopus sp., Trichoderma harzianum, and Fusarium solani. The degradation of the petroleum pollutant wasmonitored through laboratory determination using the Gas Liquid Chromatographic methods. The determinations showed the gradual but steady decline in the concentration of the petroleum hydrocarbon pollutants in the Ogoni soil within the 4-month observation period. Significant reduction in heavy metal concentration of the soils was also evidenced.