Problems and the future of environmental biotechnology

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Introduction
With the development and intensification of industrial and agricultural activities in the XX century, the limits of the natural productivity of the biosphere began to be felt -natural resources, energy sources are being depleted; the shortage of food, clean water and air is becoming more noticeable.
Ecological biotechnology is a modern approach to the protection and preservation of the environment with the integrated application of the achievements of microbiology, biochemistry, genetic engineering and chemical technologies.Ecological biotechnology is a new branch of modern biotechnology aimed at the application of biological systems and processes to solve problems of improving the quality of the environment and rational use of natural resources.Methods of ecological biotechnology provide more efficient disposal of a variety of toxic waste compared to traditional approaches, and significantly reduce our dependence on such waste disposal methods as incineration and the creation of toxic waste storage facilities [1][2].

Purpose and objectives
Taking into account the above, the goal was set to identify the problems and prospects for the development of environmental biotechnology as an urgent and developing area that directly affects the state of the environment and human health.To achieve the goal, the tasks of analyzing the methods of environmental biotechnology, studying current problems and finding promising areas of development are defined.

Materials and methods
In the course of the work, the analysis and formulation of the main ideas, the identification of trends and the use of material to substantiate the theoretical basis of the study were carried out.

Research results
It is revealed that the purpose of ecological biotechnology is to prevent, stop and reverse environmental degradation through the proper use of biotechnology in combination with other technologies:  Implementation of production processes that ensure optimal use of natural resources through biomass processing, energy recovery and minimizing waste generation. Promoting the use of biotechnological methods with an emphasis on bioremediation of land and water, waste recycling, soil conservation, reforestation, afforestation and land reclamation. Application of biotechnological processes and their products to protect the integrity of the environment for the purpose of long-term environmental safety [1,3].
The tasks of ecological biotechnology include solving environmental protection problems, which are solved with the help of bioremediation -a complex of methods for cleaning water, soil and atmosphere using the metabolic potential of biological objectsplants, fungi, insects, worms and other organisms.[4][5] Naturally, occurring or genetically modified microorganisms are often used to identify and filter toxic waste before it enters the environment or to eliminate existing pollution problems.
One of the important tasks is the cultivation of soil and land.Persistent toxic compounds, chemicals, salts, radioactive materials or pathogenic agents that have an adverse effect on plant growth and animal health, cause soil pollution.
There are two approaches to cleaning soils in a biological way:  Stimulation of the natural oil-oxidizing biocenosis remaining in the polluted soil by creating optimal conditions for its development. The introduction of hydrocarbon-oxidizing microorganisms into the oil-contaminated soil along with the creation of conditions for their vital activity, which is more appropriate.
Many types of fungi can be used for soil bioremediation: Lipomyces sp. it can decompose the herbicide paraquat, Rhodotorula sp. can turn benzaldehyde into benzyl alcohol, Candida sp.destroys formaldehyde in the soil [6].Research in the field of environmental biotechnology has made it possible to treat soil contaminated with mineral oils, oil-contaminated soils by stimulating the native oil-oxidizing microbiota.Thus, some manufacturers produce ready-made mixtures of strains of aerobic, anaerobic, E3S Web of Conferences 463, 02013 (2023) EESTE2023 https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202346302013photosynthetic, chemosynthetic, hydrocarbon-oxidizing bacteria-destructors, humic, nutrients and enzymes.
In recent decades, the role of soil enzymes that catalyze specific reactions necessary for the restoration of polluted soils, transform xenobiotics into simple and less toxic products, has been widely studied [4,6].Advanced bioremediation methods have been developed, including bioaugmentation, bioventing, bioslarping and phytoremediation.Bioaugmentation ("bio-improvement") relatively large amounts of specialized microorganisms (biologics) are introduced into the contaminated environment, which have been isolated in advance from various contaminated sources and/or especially genetically modified [1,7].The selected microorganisms are pre-propagated in fermenters under conditions close to the conditions of polluted soil, and then introduced in the required volumes into the polluted environment.Bio-removal (bioventing) is a new promising technology with the help of which the natural biochemical decomposition of any components is achieved, i.e. it is an on-site recovery technology that uses microorganisms for the biodegradation of organic components in the groundwater system.Bioslarping combines bio blowing and removal of substances.Phytoremediation is a complex of methods of wastewater, soil and atmospheric air purification using green plants [3,7].
Currently, active studies of hyper accumulators are being carried out (for example, water hyacinth -Eichhornia crassipes -is already used in phytoremediation), as well as the possibility of genetic modification of plants (transformation of plants by bacterial genes responsible for the degradation of organic substances, for example, methyl mercury and explosives) [6].
Another task of ecological biotechnology is the treatment of wastewater and industrial effluents.Water pollution is currently a serious problem in many countries of the world.The main sources of pollution are insufficiently treated wastewater from industrial and municipal enterprises, large livestock complexes, production waste from the development of ore minerals, discharges of water and rail transport; pesticides, etc. [7].The growing industrial and agricultural pollution has led to an increased need for processes that allow the filtration of certain pollutants, such as nitrogen and phosphorus compounds, heavy metals and chlorinated compounds.Oil and petroleum products -the main pollutants of inland reservoirs, waters and seas of the World Ocean -create different forms of pollution: oil film floating on water, heavy fractions deposited on the bottom of reservoirs.One of the solutions to the problem of wastewater treatment is the use of biofilters, biological ponds, aerotanks, and activated sludge process.For example, microorganisms such as Pseudomonas putida can utilize naphthalene, toluene, alkanes, phenols, refined petroleum products, as well as xenobiotics such as insecticides, herbicides and other toxic substances.This is due to the fact that bacteria are most effective at converting complex compounds into simple ones.To solve the problem of oil pollution of water, soil and other environmental objects, methods of stimulation of natural microorganisms existing in places of pollution are used and biological preparations are used, the action of which is based on combinations of microorganisms that decompose hydrocarbons [3,6].
One of the most polluted components of the atmosphere is air, which can be explained by the burning of natural gas, coal and oil.Purification of air and exhaust gases is an important task of environmental biotechnology.When garbage is decomposed in landfills and landfills of solid waste, methane gas is released, and many household goods emit volatile organic compounds.Air containing volatile compounds is passed through bioreactors, where volatile compounds are transferred from the gas phase to the liquid phase.The microbial community (a mixture of various bacteria, fungi and protozoa) grows in this liquid phase and removes compounds obtained from the air.
Methane fermentation occupies a special place in waste disposal.It allows obtaining biogas from local raw materials as a local energy source, as well as improving the quality of E3S Web of Conferences 463, 02013 (2023) EESTE2023 https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202346302013organic fertilizer and protecting the environment from pollution.Biogas is a mixture of 65% methane, 30% CO 2 , 1% hydrogen sulfide and minor impurities of nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen and carbon monoxide.Biomethanogenesis is a complex microbiological process in which organic matter decomposes to carbon dioxide and methane under aerobic conditions [4].Microbiological anaerobic decomposition is amenable to almost all compounds of natural origin, as well as a significant part of xenobiotics of organic nature.
In addition, various special installations are used for biological purification of gas-air emissions, such as biofilters, bioscrubbers and bioreactors with a washed layer [5].
The increasing shortage of fossil fuel resources highlights the acute problem of creating and implementing renewable energy sources and raw materials at the expense of biosystems: plants and phototrophic microorganisms that convert solar energy into chemical bond energy with high efficiency [4].
It is quite obvious that one of the most promising methods of large-scale conversion of solar energy is based on the use of biosystems.The widespread use of biosystems for energy production can provide over 15% of energy production for economically developed countries.
Among renewable energy sources, solar energy is still underutilized.Hydrogen is one of the most promising fuels of the future.As one of the main components in the structure of the water molecule, hydrogen is a widespread, abundant, renewable energy source available on our planet, which does not produce any environmental pollution during combustion, releases a large amount of energy per unit weight during combustion and which can be easily converted into electricity using fuel cells.
Chloroplasts in the presence of an artificial electron donor and a bacterial extract containing the enzyme hydrogenase are able to produce hydrogen [4].The main problem of creating systems for converting biomass energy into hydrogen is related to the conversion of these metabolites into fuel form.For biotechnology, it would be possible to use other mechanisms of energy conversion identified in microorganisms [5][6][7].

Conclusion
Ecological biotechnology today is one of the fastest developing and most practically useful scientific fields, which, with the combined use of achievements in biochemistry, microbiology, genetic engineering and chemical technologies, will help prevent further deterioration of the Earth's environment.Biotechnology plays an important role in the qualitative improvement of human life and the development of economic growth of countries.Biotechnology is increasingly ceasing to be an applied science, it is actively entering the ordinary life of people, helping to solve the pressing problems of modern humanity.The creation of new, more advanced methods of waste processing does not limit the use of biotechnological methods at the present stage.Biotechnology will play an increasing role in the chemical industry and agriculture every year, helping to create closed and semi-closed technological cycles, solving existing problems in these industries.