Leachates from municipal solid waste disposal sites harbor similar, novel nitrogen-cycling bacterial communities

Microbial, chemical, and isotopic monitoring integrated approach to assess potential leachate contamination of groundwater in a karstic aquifer (Apulia, Italy)

Landfill sites are subjected to long-term risks of accidental spill of leachate through the soil and consequential contamination of the groundwater. Wide areas surrounding the landfill can seriously be threatened with possible consequences to human health and the environment. Given the potential impact of different coexisting anthropic pollution sources (i.e., agriculture and cattle farming) on the same site, the perturbation of the groundwater quality may be due to multiple factors. Therefore, it is a challenging issue to correctly establish the pollution source of an aquifer where the landfill is not isolated from other anthropic land uses, especially in the case of a karstic coastal aquifer. The present study is aimed at setting in place an integrated environmental monitoring system that included microbiological, chemical, and isotope methods to evaluate potential groundwater pollution in a landfill district in the south of Italy located in Murgia karstic aquifer. Conventional (microbial plate count and physical-chemical analyses) and advanced methods (PCR-ARISA, isotope analysis of δ18O, δ2H, 3H, δ 13C, δ 15N-NO3-, and δ 18O-NO3-) were included in the study. Through data integration, it was possible to reconstruct a scenario in which agriculture and other human activities along with seawater intrusion in the karst aquifer were the main drivers of groundwater pollution at the monitored site. The microbiological, chemical, and isotope results confirmed the absence of leachate effects on groundwater quality, showing the decisive role of fertilizers as potential nitrate sources. The next goal will be to extend long-term integrated monitoring to other landfill districts, with different geological and hydrogeological characteristics and including different sources of pollution, to support the ecological restoration of landfills.

Identification of key water parameters and microbiological compositions triggering intensive N2O emissions during landfill leachate treatment process

Landfill leachate treatment processes tend to emit more N₂O compared to domestic wastewater treatment. This discrepancy may be ascribed to leachate water characteristics such as high refractory COD, ammonium (NH₄⁺) content, and salinity. In this work, the leachate influent was varied to examine the N₂O emission scenarios. NH₄⁺-N, COD, and Cl^- concentrations ranged between 1000-2500, 1000-10,000, and 500-3000 mg L^-1, respectively. Simultaneously, we attempted to combine statistical analysis with high-throughput sequencing to understand the microbial mechanism with regards to N₂O emission. Results show that the strong N₂O emissions occur in the nitrifying tank due to the intensive aeration. The system receiving the lowest COD shows the maximum N₂O emission factor of 42.7% of the removed nitrogen. Both redundancy analysis and a structural equation model verify that insufficient degradable organics are the key water parameter triggering intensive N₂O emission within the designed influent limits. Furthermore, two essential but non-abundant functional bacteria, Flavobacterium (acting as a denitrifier) and Nitrosomonas (acting as a nitrifier), are identified as the core functional species that dramatically influence N₂O emissions. An increase in influent COD promotes the proliferation of Flavobacterium and inhibits Nitrosomonas, which in turn reduce N₂O release. Meanwhile, two keystone species of Castellaniella and Saprospiraceae unclassified are recognized. They may supply a suitable niche and integrity of the microbial community for N-cycle functional bacteria. These findings reveal the essential role of non-abundant species in microbial community, and expand the current understanding of microbial interactions underlying N₂O dynamics in leachate treatment systems.

Genome-centric metagenomics provides new insights into the microbial community and metabolic potential of landfill leachate microbiota

Landfills are important sources of microorganisms associated with anaerobic digestion. However, the knowledge on microbiota along with their functional potential in this special habitat are still lacking. In this study, we recovered 1168 non-redundant metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) from nine landfill leachate samples collected from eight cities across China, spanning 42 phyla, 73 classes, 114 orders, 189 families, and 267 genera. Totally, 74.1% of 1168 MAGs could not be classified to any known species and 5.9% of these MAGs belonged to microbial dark matter phyla. Two putative novel classes were discovered from landfill leachate samples. The identification of thousands of novel carbohydrate-active enzymes showed similar richness level compared to the cow rumen microbiota. The methylotrophic methanogenic pathway was speculated to contribute significantly to methane production in the landfill leachate because of its co-occurrence with the acetoclastic and hydrogenotrophic methanogenic pathways. The genetic potential of dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) was observed, implying DNRA may play a role in ammonium generation in landfill leachate. These findings implied that landfill leachate might be a valuable microbial resource repository and filled the previous understanding gaps for both methanogenesis and nitrogen cycling in landfill leachate microbiota. Our study provides a comprehensive genomic catalog and substantially provides unprecedented taxonomic and functional profiles of the landfill leachate microbiota.

Evaluating the impacts of leachate co-treatment on a full-scale municipal wastewater treatment plant in Canada

The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of leachate co-treatment on a full-scale municipal WWTPby comparing plant performance at varying levels of leachate contributions and hydraulic loadings.Leachate BOD:COD ratio was 0.08 ± 0.07 and indicated a stabilized, old matrix and concentrations of zinc, iron, aluminum, chloride and sulfate were 0.174, 38, 1.47, 1803 and 119.1 mg/L, respectively. The average volumetric leachate ratio (VLR%) was approximately 0.01% corresponding to a daily volume of 30 m³ but reaching a maximum of 270 m³(VLR% = 0.1%) and fluctuating on a daily-basis. A cluster analysis revealed 5 VLR% groupings that were used for subsequent analyses:no leachate, 0 < Low ≤ 0.001, 0.001 < Medium ≤ 0.02, 0.02 < High ≤ 0.05, 0.05 < Very high ≤ 0.2. Treated effluent concentrations of TKN, ammonia, fecal coliforms (FC),E. coli(EC), TSS and TP experienced atrend where effluent quality was improved at low and medium VLR%compared to no leachate addition, but deteriorated in high and very high VLR%.Treated effluent UVT% and EC were not statistically significantly different at varying VLR%, but FC was.Plant hydraulic had a significant impact on removal rates.Ammonia removals and nitrite concentrations improved inhigh flow conditions, whileTP, BOD and cBODremovals deteriorated. Finally,VLR%, leachate COD, TKN ammonia, chloride and arsenic had significant relationships with plant performance. Thus,for leachate with comparable age and strength, VLR% should not exceedlow to medium contributions(0 and 0.02%)during co-treatment at this WWTP.

Landfill microbiome harbour plastic degrading genes: A metagenomic study of solid waste dumping site of Gujarat, India

Globally, environmental pollution by plastic waste has become a severe ecological and social problem worldwide. The present study aimed to analyse the bacterial community structure and functional potential of the landfill site using high throughput shotgun metagenomic approach to understand plastic degrading capabilities present in the municipal solid waste (MSW) dumping site. In this study, soil, leachate and compost samples were collected from various locations (height and depth) of the Pirana landfill site in Ahmedabad city Gujarat, India. In total 30 phyla, 58 class, 125 order, 278 families, 793 genera, and 2468 species were predicted. The most dominant phyla detected were Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria in the soil and compost samples. Whereas, in leachate samples, the predominant phyla belonged to Firmicutes (54.24%) followed by Actinobacteria (43.67%) and Proteobacteria (1.02%). The functional profiling revealed the presence of enzymatic groups and pathways involved in biodegradation of xenobiotics. The results also demonstrated the presence of potential genes that is associated with the biodegradation of different types of plastics such as polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polystyrene (PS). Present study extablishes the relationship between microbial community structure and rich sources of gene pool, which are actively involved in biodegradation of plastic waste in landfill sites.

A Review of Landfill Microbiology and Ecology: A Call for Modernization With 'Next Generation' Technology

Engineered and monitored sanitary landfills have been widespread in the United States since the passage of the Clean Water Act (1972) with additional controls under RCRA Subtitle D (1991) and the Clean Air Act Amendments (1996). Concurrently, many common perceptions regarding landfill biogeochemical and microbiological processes and estimated rates of gas production also date from 2 to 4 decades ago. Herein, we summarize the recent application of modern microbiological tools as well as recent metadata analysis using California, USEPA and international data to outline an evolving view of landfill biogeochemical/microbiological processes and rates. We focus on United States landfills because these are uniformly subject to stringent national and state requirements for design, operations, monitoring, and reporting. From a microbiological perspective, because anoxic conditions and methanogenesis are rapidly established after daily burial of waste and application of cover soil, the >1000 United States landfills with thicknesses up to >100 m form a large ubiquitous group of dispersed 'dark' ecosystems dominated by anaerobic microbial decomposition pathways for food, garden waste, and paper substrates. We review past findings of landfill ecosystem processes, and reflect on the potential impact that application of modern sequencing technologies (e.g., high throughput platforms) could have on this area of research. Moreover, due to the ever evolving composition of landfilled waste reflecting transient societal practices, we also consider unusual microbial processes known or suspected to occur in landfill settings, and posit areas of research that will be needed in coming decades. With growing concerns about greenhouse gas emissions and controls, the increase of chemicals of emerging concern in the waste stream, and the potential resource that waste streams represent, application of modernized molecular and microbiological methods to landfill ecosystem research is of paramount importance.

Nitrosomonas stercoris sp. nov., a Chemoautotrophic Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacterium Tolerant of High Ammonium Isolated from Composted Cattle Manure

Among ammonia-oxidizing bacteria, Nitrosomonas eutropha-like microbes are distributed in strongly eutrophic environments such as wastewater treatment plants and animal manure. In the present study, we isolated an ammonia-oxidizing bacterium tolerant of high ammonium levels, designated strain KYUHI-S^T, from composted cattle manure. Unlike the other known Nitrosomonas species, this isolate grew at 1,000 mM ammonium. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA and amoA genes indicated that the isolate belonged to the genus Nitrosomonas and formed a unique cluster with the uncultured ammonia oxidizers found in wastewater systems and animal manure composts, suggesting that these ammonia oxidizers contributed to removing higher concentrations of ammonia in strongly eutrophic environments. Based on the physiological and phylogenetic data presented here, we propose and call for the validation of the provisional taxonomic assignment Nitrosomonas stercoris, with strain KYUHI-S as the type strain (type strain KYUHI-S^T = NBRC 110753^T = ATCC BAA-2718^T).

Microbiology of nitrogen cycle in animal manure compost

Composting is the major technology in the treatment of animal manure and is a source of nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas. Although the microbiological processes of both nitrification and denitrification are involved in composting, the key players in these pathways have not been well identified. Recent molecular microbiological methodologies have revealed the presence of dominant Bacillus species in the degradation of organic material or betaproteobacterial ammonia-oxidizing bacteria on nitrification on the surface, and have also revealed the mechanism of nitrous oxide emission in this complicated process to some extent. Some bacteria, archaea or fungi still would be considered potential key players, and the contribution of some pathways, such as nitrifier denitrification or heterotrophic nitrification, might be involved in composting. This review article discusses these potential microbial players in nitrification-denitrification within the composting pile and highlights the relevant unknowns through recent activities that focus on the nitrogen cycle within the animal manure composting process.

Comparison of the effects of different salts on aerobic ammonia oxidizers for treating ammonium-rich organic wastewater by free and sodium alginate immobilized biomass system

Partial nitrification to nitrite by aerobic ammonium oxidizing bacteria (AOB) is an important pre-treatment step for subsequent denitrification and anammox. Ammonium-rich wastewater may contain different amounts of organic matter and salts, which can influent the growth and activity of AOB significantly. In this study we investigated the influence of various salts on the performance of a partial nitrification process with free and sodium alginate immobilized biomass. Immobilization of the AOB cells did not have a great effect on the activity of the biomass, and complete inhibition for the immobilized AOB was observed at sulfate, chloride and phosphate concentrations of 500, 1000 and 700 mM, respectively. Free biomass was already inhibited at 300, 500 and 500 mM concentrations of sulfate, chloride and phosphate. Both free and immobilized biomass contained Nitrosomonas europaea/eutropha-like AOB. Compared to free nitrifying biomass, immobilized biomass appeared to be less sensitive to salt stress (maximum 30%). Since no difference in the composition of the AOB was observed between free and immobilized biomass, the protection by the immobilization is the most likely factor explaining the observed differences.

Source of nitrous oxide emissions during the cow manure composting process as revealed by isotopomer analysis of and amoA abundance in betaproteobacterial ammonia-oxidizing bacteria

A molecular analysis of betaproteobacterial ammonia oxidizers and a N(2)O isotopomer analysis were conducted to study the sources of N(2)O emissions during the cow manure composting process. Much NO(2)(-)-N and NO(3)(-)-N and the Nitrosomonas europaea-like amoA gene were detected at the surface, especially at the top of the composting pile, suggesting that these ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) significantly contribute to the nitrification which occurs at the surface layer of compost piles. However, the (15)N site preference within the asymmetric N(2)O molecule (SP = delta(15)N(alpha) - delta(15)N(beta), where (15)N(alpha) and (15)N(beta) represent the (15)N/(14)N ratios at the center and end sites of the nitrogen atoms, respectively) indicated that the source of N(2)O emissions just after the compost was turned originated mainly from the denitrification process. Based on these results, the reduction of accumulated NO(2)(-)-N or NO(3)(-)-N after turning was identified as the main source of N(2)O emissions. The site preference and bulk delta(15)N results also indicate that the rate of N(2)O reduction was relatively low, and an increased value for the site preference indicates that the nitrification which occurred mainly in the surface layer of the pile partially contributed to N(2)O emissions between the turnings.

Source of nitrous oxide emissions during the cow manure composting process as revealed by isotopomer analysis of and amoA abundance in betaproteobacterial ammonia-oxidizing bacteria

A molecular analysis of betaproteobacterial ammonia oxidizers and a N(2)O isotopomer analysis were conducted to study the sources of N(2)O emissions during the cow manure composting process. Much NO(2)(-)-N and NO(3)(-)-N and the Nitrosomonas europaea-like amoA gene were detected at the surface, especially at the top of the composting pile, suggesting that these ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) significantly contribute to the nitrification which occurs at the surface layer of compost piles. However, the (15)N site preference within the asymmetric N(2)O molecule (SP = delta(15)N(alpha) - delta(15)N(beta), where (15)N(alpha) and (15)N(beta) represent the (15)N/(14)N ratios at the center and end sites of the nitrogen atoms, respectively) indicated that the source of N(2)O emissions just after the compost was turned originated mainly from the denitrification process. Based on these results, the reduction of accumulated NO(2)(-)-N or NO(3)(-)-N after turning was identified as the main source of N(2)O emissions. The site preference and bulk delta(15)N results also indicate that the rate of N(2)O reduction was relatively low, and an increased value for the site preference indicates that the nitrification which occurred mainly in the surface layer of the pile partially contributed to N(2)O emissions between the turnings.