This work focused on microbial bioremediation as a sustainable approach for improving soil and water quality affected by heavy metals, hydrocarbons, and other recalcitrant pollutants. The primary goal was to assess the efficacy of microbial consortia compared with single strains and to investigate ecological resilience and system-level dynamics that enabled long-term remediation. Unlike conventional physical or chemical treatments, microbial systems generated synergies of metabolic processes and ecological interactions that enhanced pollutant degradation. This review integrated recent advances in genomics, systems modeling, and ecological monitoring, and demonstrated how these tools were applied in biostimulation and bioaugmentation strategies. The novelty of this work lay in combining fine-grained microbial processes with system-level resilience thinking, providing new insights into the scalability and sustainability of bioremediation. While microbial systems were highly promising, challenges remained, including incomplete degradation, site heterogeneity, and biosafety concerns. The paper concluded with recommendations for the robust design of microbial consortia, the development of predictive ecological models, and the improvement of policy frameworks to ensure safe, equitable, and long-term adoption of microbial bioremediation.
Ebol et al. (Fri,) studied this question.