**3. Bioremediation: healthy environment healthy life**

Application of microorganisms, in this case, bacteria to improve the environment is actually not only probiotics but also the bioremediation process. In the bioremediation, microorganisms are also used to neutralize, detoxify, remove, clean up, break down, and/or decompose waste and other hazardous pollutants into less toxic or non-toxic substances. Microorganisms in the aquaculture environment are in direct contact with animals, with gills and food supplied, having easy access to the digestive tract of animals. Among the microorganisms that exist in the aquatic environment are microorganisms that are potentially pathogenic, opportunistic,

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death (**Figure 1**).

**Figure 1.**

*Probiotics and Bioremediation*

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.90093*

those who take advantage of situations of animal stress in high stocking density, poor nutrition to cause infections, low growth and feed efficiency rates, and even

*approx. USD 28.5 million [29]. Image courtesy of Google maps [31–33].*

*Aerial image of Cirata dam located in West Java, Indonesia (upper) showing uncontrolled density of floating cage aquaculture causing rapid degradation in its water quality (lower-left); deaths of thousands of tons of fish in floating cages aquaculture due to lack of oxygen and rising toxic gas (lower-right) causing economic loss of* 

Mass fish deaths often occur in Indonesian waters with the greatest frequency and quantity occurring in lake/reservoir waters, followed by rivers and finally in sea/coast waters. The most common cause of mass death of fish is hypoxia, mainly due to the up-welling phenomenon, namely the increase in the mass of the bottom water to the surface, so that the waste generated from aquaculture activities in the form of organic material rises to the surface [26]. Up-welling events usually take place in the rainy season which results in differences in water density between surface water and bottom waters. Rising water will mix and carry organic materials and toxic gases (such as H2S and ammonia) that can cause poisoning to fish or cause a decrease in dissolved oxygen levels due to plankton blooming that is triggered by excess of nitrate and phosphate nutrients. In marine waters, mass fish deaths have also occurred, such as in November 2015 in Jakarta Bay or earlier in 2004 and 2005, and in Lampung Bay in 2013. The mass deaths of sea fish are usually caused by the

*Microorganisms*

Arabidopsis and cucumber (*Cucumis sativus* L.)

Iceberg lettuce (*Lactuca sativa* L.) and rocket (*Eruca sativa* Mill.)

Saffron (*Crocus sativus* L.)

**Subject Probiotics** 

**organism**

Cotton Rhizobacteria The bacterial

*Trichoderma asperelloides* T203

Trichoderma strains: *T. virens* (GV41) and *T. harzianum* (T22)

*R. intraradices* and *Funneliformis mosseae*

**Results Application Reference**

Biofertilizers [22]

Biofertilizers [23]

Biofertilizers [24]

Biofertilizers [25]

inoculum (50 g/kg of seed) significantly increased seed cotton yield (21%), plant height (5%) and microbial population in soil (41%) over their respective controls

*Trichoderma* spp. stimulate plant growth prior to salt stress imposition and significantly improved seed germination.

Trichoderma able to manage the nutrient content of leafy horticulture crops cultivated in low fertility soils, and assist vegetable growers in reducing the use of synthetic fertilizers, and optimize N use efficiency.

Soilless cultivation systems enhanced by the symbiosis with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi able to produce high quality saffron.

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researchers [21–25].

**Table 1.**

of probiotic microorganisms that are able to dissolve the P element in acid soils can increase the production of agricultural commodities as reported by many

Application of microorganisms, in this case, bacteria to improve the environment is actually not only probiotics but also the bioremediation process. In the bioremediation, microorganisms are also used to neutralize, detoxify, remove, clean up, break down, and/or decompose waste and other hazardous pollutants into less toxic or non-toxic substances. Microorganisms in the aquaculture environment are in direct contact with animals, with gills and food supplied, having easy access to the digestive tract of animals. Among the microorganisms that exist in the aquatic environment are microorganisms that are potentially pathogenic, opportunistic,

**3. Bioremediation: healthy environment healthy life**

*Reports of the use of probiotics in aquaculture, animal husbandry, and agriculture.*

#### **Figure 1.**

*Aerial image of Cirata dam located in West Java, Indonesia (upper) showing uncontrolled density of floating cage aquaculture causing rapid degradation in its water quality (lower-left); deaths of thousands of tons of fish in floating cages aquaculture due to lack of oxygen and rising toxic gas (lower-right) causing economic loss of approx. USD 28.5 million [29]. Image courtesy of Google maps [31–33].*

those who take advantage of situations of animal stress in high stocking density, poor nutrition to cause infections, low growth and feed efficiency rates, and even death (**Figure 1**).

Mass fish deaths often occur in Indonesian waters with the greatest frequency and quantity occurring in lake/reservoir waters, followed by rivers and finally in sea/coast waters. The most common cause of mass death of fish is hypoxia, mainly due to the up-welling phenomenon, namely the increase in the mass of the bottom water to the surface, so that the waste generated from aquaculture activities in the form of organic material rises to the surface [26]. Up-welling events usually take place in the rainy season which results in differences in water density between surface water and bottom waters. Rising water will mix and carry organic materials and toxic gases (such as H2S and ammonia) that can cause poisoning to fish or cause a decrease in dissolved oxygen levels due to plankton blooming that is triggered by excess of nitrate and phosphate nutrients. In marine waters, mass fish deaths have also occurred, such as in November 2015 in Jakarta Bay or earlier in 2004 and 2005, and in Lampung Bay in 2013. The mass deaths of sea fish are usually caused by the

phenomenon of algal blooming (red tide), namely the plankton population explosion that was followed by mass death and caused a decrease in oxygen content due to algal respiration processes [27, 28]. As a result, fish become oxygen deficient or there is a blockage in the fish's respiratory organs (gills) by plankton. Besides causing economic losses because most of the fish that die suddenly cannot be utilized anymore, the remaining fish carcasses also pollute the environment due to their suboptimal handling. Potential economic loss of aquaculture sudden death in Cirata dam incident in 2013 is IDR 427,6 Billion or USD 28.5 Million [29]. For this reason, the use of probiotics for aquaculture aims not only at direct benefits for animals but also their effects on the fishing environment. There are two types of probiotic applications, first with direct feed (mixed into diet formulation) and secondly through the environment (mixed with water and/or sediment). Application of the first method can improve feed quality by adding additives in the form of probiotics containing beneficial microbes and decomposers into the feed that can function to improve feed quality by converting them into compounds that are more easily absorbed by the intestine thereby increasing feed digestibility. While the second application will improve the quality of the surrounding environment, e.g., decompose toxic substance such as ammonia, sulphide, fish excreta, also excess feed that potentially attract pathogens and other unwanted micro- and macroflora. Benefits observed in probiotic supplementation in aquaculture include:


Meanwhile, one way to improve soil environmental quality is by introducing microbes to the soil through compost. Making compost from organic materials, in the form of by-products of agricultural activities as well as household, market and municipal waste needs to be encouraged. More effective compost making technology can be done by using a starter or microbes that accelerates the decomposition of organic material which is beneficial for plants. Giving compost on agricultural land provides a double benefit, namely improving soil microbial composition and increasing soil organic matter content. In order to make effective use of microbes in improving agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries, it is necessary to develop microbial cocktails for each species of plant, livestock or fish [30]. The cocktail must have key features such as:

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*Probiotics and Bioremediation*

**Figure 2.**

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.90093*

The working mechanism of bioremediation involves several technical aspects such as biotransformation, biodegradation, mineralization, phytohydraulics, bioaccumulation, and biovolatilization where the degrading microbes or plants remove, transform, modify, and/or convert a complex compound of pollutants into simpler and less toxic compounds. This bioremediation system has been successfully applied in cleaning contaminated sites, agricultural land, sediments, ground water, surface water, and sea water. Bioremediation through microorganisms generally involves the application of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria and fungi to restore the environment. Rhizoremediation is a remediation technique of soil contaminated pollutants by the action of plants (phytoremediation) and their symbiotic rhizosphere microbes. Plant growth-promoting microbes have been used for the restoration of infertile marginal land by increasing crop productivity. The application of probiotics on a broader scale is bioremediation. **Figure 2** shows the relationship between probiotics and bioremediation, where probiotics are defined as living microorganisms which, if given in sufficient quantities, provide health benefits to the host (humans, and/or animals), while bioremediation is augmentation or stimulation of microorganisms in sufficient quantities and manners, providing health benefits to the host (remediate or restoring polluted environment).

*The relationship between probiotics and bioremediation on a broader scale.*

