Parveen Fatemeh Rupani

Vermicomposting biotechnology: recycling of palm oil mill wastes into valuable products

BackgroundPalm oil mill effluent and palm press fiber are problematic wastes generated by the palm oil mill industries in Malaysia. This study has endeavored to assess the possibility of the vermicomposting of residue from the palm oil mills using epigeic earthworms Lumbricus rubellus under laboratory conditions. The study was conducted over 50 days using four combinations in three replicates of each treatment as palm oil mill effluent: palm press fiber in 50:50 ratio (T1), palm oil mill effluent/palm press fiber/cow dung in 50:25:25 ratio (T2), palm oil mill effluent/palm press fiber/cow dung/lawn clipping in 50:20:15:15 ratio (T3), and only palm press fiber (T4). Twenty healthy adult L. rubellus with average weight of 3.92 g was introduced.ResultsResults showed that T3 has a significant decrease in C/N ratio (14.81 ± 0.07) compared to the other treatments. The presence of cow dung and lawn clipping in the mixtures makes it more suitable for vermicomposting process as early compost productions were recorded in T2 and T3.ConclusionThe study showed that the major polluting problem in palm oil mills can be tackled through vermicomposting technique. Based on the results, vermicompost is found suitable for agriculture purposes as an organic fertilizer as well as soil conditioner.

The phytoextraction potential of selected vegetable plants from soil amended with oil palm decanter cake

PurposeThe investigation of the phytoextraction potential of three vegetable plants grown in soils amended with decanter cake.MethodPot experiments were conducted to investigate the response of decanter cake composition on the phytoextraction of metals (Mg, Zn, Ni and Cu) by lady’s finger, tomato and brinjal plants. The phytoextraction properties of these plants were determined by calculating the bioconcentration and translocation factors at different decanter cake amendments (10, 20 and 30%).ResultsResults indicated that in all three plants, there was no transfer of excess metal ions from the control soil or amendments to the fruit portion as evidenced by bioconcentration factor (BCF). In addition, substantial amount of the metals was found to be accumulated in the roots and shoots, which depicts the phytoextraction ability of these vegetable plants. The translocation factors (TF) of the three plants were found to be higher than control plants. The accumulation of metal ions did not exceed the permissible standards for vegetables thus rendering the fruits safe for human consumption.ConclusionOn the basis of significant findings, lady’s finger, tomato and brinjal plants were not found to be suitable for phytoextraction of metals as both BCF and TF were not greater than 1.

Environmental Xenobiotics and Its Effects on Natural Ecosystem

Environmental contamination by xenobiotics is a worldwide phenomenon as a result of human activities resulting from rise in urbanization and population growth. There are numerous sources of xenobiotics ranging from pharmaceuticals to agriculture. Recently, the demand for pharmaceuticals versus population growth has placed the public at risk. In addition, the making of unlawful drugs has led to the discharge of harmful carcinogens into the water system. The release of these harmful pollutants results in numerous short- and long-term effects to the natural ecosystem. This review takes a look at the sources of xenobiotics, their fate in the ecosystem and means of action with possible prevention methods.