Heavy Metal Remediation from Rhizospheric Soil by Using Microbial Consortium

Heavy metals (HMs) persisting in increasing concentrations in the environment are toxic. These are non-degradable; get accumulated inside living organisms and in plants. In plants, these hinder various metabolic or enzymatic reactions. The presence of HMs in soil used for agriculture practices can increase the risk of metal uptake in edible plants resulting in subsequent bioaccumulation and causing a hazardous effect on the plant’s health. Therefore, it is necessary to remediate these contaminants from the environment. Bioremediation is a process that employs living organisms for the removal of various HMs and other pollutants from the environment. Various microbes survive in the presence of HMs to cope with environmental stress and develop defense mechanisms to overcome biotic and biotic stress. Soil microbes play a very important role in the remediation of HMs present in the rhizosphere. The HM remediation and degradation process can be enhanced by using microbial consortia. The present chapter emphasizes the bioremediation capability of microbial consortia for the removal of HM from polluted rhizospheric soil.