Biodegradation and Persistence

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Biodegradation is a key phenomenon among environmental processes. Low degradation rates lead to the persistance of chemicals in the environment and, as a consequence, to delayed or long-term effects, which may be even unknown by now. The persistance of these xenobiotics has become of a great public and political concern in recent years. This is, among others, reflected by the international activities of the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) which mainly deals with the problems, risk assessment and environmental management of POPs (persistant organic pollutants), PEPs (persistant environmental pollutants) and PBTs (persistant bioaccumulative toxic substances). In this volume the editor has pulled together the newest results of research on biodegradation and persistance of potential environmentally harmful substances and the complex processes involved. One main focus is on the microbial degradation, the evolution and predictability of the respective pathways and their impact on bioremediation. Additional chapters deal with sewage treatment plants, the impact of toxicants on impaired biodegradation, and with the need of a more realistic view on fate and behaviour of chemicals in the environment.