MICROBIAL CONSORTIA FOR THE AEROBIC DEGRADATION OF AROMATIC-COMPOUNDSIN OLIVE OIL MILL EFFLUENT

Aerobic consortia that grow on olive oil mill effluent (OOME) were obt ained by enrichment. Several cultures were capable of metabolizing mon oaromatic compounds, supplied as the sole carbon source at 2 g L(-1). Some consortia degraded mixtures of seven aromatics (4 g L(-1)) after 1 week of incubation at 32 degrees C. The consortia were also active a gainst monoaromatics of the undiluted OOME. This reduced the inhibitor y effect of phenolic compounds prior to the anaerobic digestion of OOM E at batch scale. No inhibition of the anaerobic microbial populations was noticed with treated OOME. From the most active consortium, nine different bacterial strains were isolated and shown to grow on simple aromatic compounds. Removal of 50% of the initial chemical oxygen dema nd and degradation of almost all of the simple aromatics in undiluted OOME was obtained with reconstituted bacterial mixtures. A slight redu ction in colouration was due to adsorption of coloured compounds to ba cterial cells, Presumably, the consortia could not reduce and degrade the coloured compounds in OOME.