Biodegradation of tri- and perchloroethylene in sewage waters and soils by a microbial consortium of compost and phototrophic bacteria

Compost and phototrophic bacteria are found to be able to degrade trichloroethylene (TCE) and perchloroethylene (PCE). With a TCE dose increase by more than 10 mg/kg, the TCE degradation decreases due to the toxic effect of this pollutant on microbial consortium activity. The addition of compost combined with a liquid culture of phototrophic bacteria (PTB) is experimentally proved to effectively decrease the TCE content in soil and water.