Answer the following.
a. Which fuels can be obtained by microbial processes? Why is it necessary to increase the use of such fuels?
b. How can the oil spills of rivers and oceans be cleaned?
c. How can the soil polluted by acid rain be made fertile again?
d. Explain the importance of biopesticides in or ganic farming.
e. Which are the reasons for increasing the popularity of probiotic products?
f. How the bread and other products produced using baker’s yeast are nutritious?
g. Which precautions are necessary for proper decomposition of domestic waste?
h. Why is it necessary to ban the use of plastic bags?
a. Which fuels can be obtained by microbial processes? Why is it necessary to increase the use of such fuels?
b. How can the oil spills of rivers and oceans be cleaned?
c. How can the soil polluted by acid rain be made fertile again?
d. Explain the importance of biopesticides in or ganic farming.
e. Which are the reasons for increasing the popularity of probiotic products?
f. How the bread and other products produced using baker’s yeast are nutritious?
g. Which precautions are necessary for proper decomposition of domestic waste?
h. Why is it necessary to ban the use of plastic bags?
a. There are different kinds of fuel which can be produced with the help of microbes. Some of the examples of such fuels are:
1. Ethanol- It is a byproduct which is produced during fermentation of molasses by Saccharomyces. It is a type of alcohol and is a clean (smokeless) fuel. It is mixed with petrol and diesel to prevent vehicular emission.
2. Methane- Methane is a gaseous fuel which is obtained by microbial anaerobic decomposition of urban agricultural and industrial waste.
3. Hydrogen fuel: Hydrogen is released during bio-photolysis of water in which bacteria perform photoreduction. It is considered as the fuel of future as it is non polluting and an efficient fuel.
Fuels which are obtained from fossil fuels are non renewable and also polluting. These fuels like hydrogen, ethanol, methane are the future fuels as they burn cleaner with more less same efficiency and are renewable. Thus, their use needs to be promoted further.
b. Oil spills are a form of pollution in which liquid fuels, like petroleum are spilled on water, land or air. Oil spills usually occur in oceans where there is accidental leakage of oil. It is harmful to the aquatic life as it reduces the availability of oxygen and would eventually result in their death. It is difficult to clear out oil spills as the methods used are not much efficient and take a lot of time. To solve this issue, a new approach has been developed which uses bacteria known as hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria (HCB) for this purpose. These group of bacteria are capable of degrading pyrimidines and other chemicals. They convert hydrocarbons to CO2 and oxygen. Pseudomonas sp. and Alcanovorax borkumensis are used for this purpose.
c. The sulphuric acid which is a part of acid rain and is released from various industries is a common pollutant of soil. Soil which has been polluted by sulphuric acid cannot be used for cultivation of plants. However, there is a way of treating this soil to make it fertile again. Microorganisms like Acidophillium sp. and Acidobacillus ferroxidens can be used in the treatment of soil polluted with sulphuric acid.
d. Biopesticide is a term used for bacterial and fungal toxins which can be used to destroy pests/pathogens/insects and can be directly integrated into the plants. The special characteristics of biopesticide is that they do not harm the plant or other organisms except its target organism. Some of the examples of biopesticides are-
-
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is used to control butterfly caterpillars. This bacterium is available in sachets as dried spores, which are sprayed on the crops. The spores get into the gut of the larvae and kill it while the other insects remain unperturbed.
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By methods of genetic engineering, the genes of B. thuringiensis responsible for killing the larvae have been incorporated into the plants. Cotton plant with Bt gene incorporated is called Bt-cotton.
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The fungus Trichoderma living in roots of plants acts as a biocontrol agent against several plant pathogens.
- Baculoviruses, particularly genus Nucleopolyhedrovirus are also used as narrow spectrum insecticidal agents.
e. Probiotics are such edible preparations which contain useful active bacteria, like Lactobacillus, Acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Bifidobacterium bifidum, etc. There are various reasons for which probiotics are being promoted nowadays. These bacteria are beneficial for the intestine as they help in the process of metabolism. They are usually given when a person is suffering from diarrhoea or is under antibiotic treatment. Antibiotics kill both beneficial and harmful bacteria present in our body, thus affecting the metabolic process. These probiotics form the colonies of useful microbes in alimentary canal and thus aid in the digestion process.
f. Baker's yeast is commonly used in food production. It's major application is in the food industry where it is used in variou baking procedures as well as for fermentation purposes. Fermentation of fruit juices, maple syrup, sugar molasses etc. with the help of yeast yields ethanol whereas it is used in baking breads and other products as it provides them with a fluffy and spongy characteristic. Apart from this, yeast is also a rich source of carbohydrates, fats, proteins, various vitamins, and minerals which means it also increases the nutritive value of the product to which it is added.
g. Domestic waste refers to the waste which is generated in our houses due to our daily activities. Domestic waste can be either biodegradable or non biodegradable for example, vegetable and fruit peels are biodegradable whereas batteries, computers etc are non biodegradable. biodegardable products can be used for making composts which can be used in parks, plant pots etc. For non biodegradable products we need to practice the 3R's and only after that they should be discarded as waste. The 3R's are -
Reduce- Reduce the amount of waste produced.
Reuse- Reusing a resource in a new way before throwing it.
Recycle- Making something new from a material rather than throwing it away.
h. Plastic bags are non biodegradable products which pose a serious threat to the environment. Non biodegradable products do not decompose easily and thus keep on accumulating in the environment. There are various other reasons for which plastic bags should be banned, for example:
- plastic bags, on getting into drains and sewer system, choke them up resulting in spilling of dirty water on the roads
- burning of plastic bags produces harmful gases, which can cause health problems
- street animals may consume these plastic bags, which may even result in their deaths.
a. There are different kinds of fuel which can be produced with the help of microbes. Some of the examples of such fuels are:
2. Methane- Methane is a gaseous fuel which is obtained by microbial anaerobic decomposition of urban agricultural and industrial waste.
3. Hydrogen fuel: Hydrogen is released during bio-photolysis of water in which bacteria perform photoreduction. It is considered as the fuel of future as it is non polluting and an efficient fuel.
Fuels which are obtained from fossil fuels are non renewable and also polluting. These fuels like hydrogen, ethanol, methane are the future fuels as they burn cleaner with more less same efficiency and are renewable. Thus, their use needs to be promoted further.
b. Oil spills are a form of pollution in which liquid fuels, like petroleum are spilled on water, land or air. Oil spills usually occur in oceans where there is accidental leakage of oil. It is harmful to the aquatic life as it reduces the availability of oxygen and would eventually result in their death. It is difficult to clear out oil spills as the methods used are not much efficient and take a lot of time. To solve this issue, a new approach has been developed which uses bacteria known as hydrocarbonoclastic bacteria (HCB) for this purpose. These group of bacteria are capable of degrading pyrimidines and other chemicals. They convert hydrocarbons to CO2 and oxygen. Pseudomonas sp. and Alcanovorax borkumensis are used for this purpose.
c. The sulphuric acid which is a part of acid rain and is released from various industries is a common pollutant of soil. Soil which has been polluted by sulphuric acid cannot be used for cultivation of plants. However, there is a way of treating this soil to make it fertile again. Microorganisms like Acidophillium sp. and Acidobacillus ferroxidens can be used in the treatment of soil polluted with sulphuric acid.
d. Biopesticide is a term used for bacterial and fungal toxins which can be used to destroy pests/pathogens/insects and can be directly integrated into the plants. The special characteristics of biopesticide is that they do not harm the plant or other organisms except its target organism. Some of the examples of biopesticides are-
-
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is used to control butterfly caterpillars. This bacterium is available in sachets as dried spores, which are sprayed on the crops. The spores get into the gut of the larvae and kill it while the other insects remain unperturbed.
-
By methods of genetic engineering, the genes of B. thuringiensis responsible for killing the larvae have been incorporated into the plants. Cotton plant with Bt gene incorporated is called Bt-cotton.
-
The fungus Trichoderma living in roots of plants acts as a biocontrol agent against several plant pathogens.
- Baculoviruses, particularly genus Nucleopolyhedrovirus are also used as narrow spectrum insecticidal agents.
e. Probiotics are such edible preparations which contain useful active bacteria, like Lactobacillus, Acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Bifidobacterium bifidum, etc. There are various reasons for which probiotics are being promoted nowadays. These bacteria are beneficial for the intestine as they help in the process of metabolism. They are usually given when a person is suffering from diarrhoea or is under antibiotic treatment. Antibiotics kill both beneficial and harmful bacteria present in our body, thus affecting the metabolic process. These probiotics form the colonies of useful microbes in alimentary canal and thus aid in the digestion process.
f. Baker's yeast is commonly used in food production. It's major application is in the food industry where it is used in variou baking procedures as well as for fermentation purposes. Fermentation of fruit juices, maple syrup, sugar molasses etc. with the help of yeast yields ethanol whereas it is used in baking breads and other products as it provides them with a fluffy and spongy characteristic. Apart from this, yeast is also a rich source of carbohydrates, fats, proteins, various vitamins, and minerals which means it also increases the nutritive value of the product to which it is added.
g. Domestic waste refers to the waste which is generated in our houses due to our daily activities. Domestic waste can be either biodegradable or non biodegradable for example, vegetable and fruit peels are biodegradable whereas batteries, computers etc are non biodegradable. biodegardable products can be used for making composts which can be used in parks, plant pots etc. For non biodegradable products we need to practice the 3R's and only after that they should be discarded as waste. The 3R's are -
Reduce- Reduce the amount of waste produced.
Reuse- Reusing a resource in a new way before throwing it.
Recycle- Making something new from a material rather than throwing it away.
h. Plastic bags are non biodegradable products which pose a serious threat to the environment. Non biodegradable products do not decompose easily and thus keep on accumulating in the environment. There are various other reasons for which plastic bags should be banned, for example:
- plastic bags, on getting into drains and sewer system, choke them up resulting in spilling of dirty water on the roads
- burning of plastic bags produces harmful gases, which can cause health problems
- street animals may consume these plastic bags, which may even result in their deaths.
