One more step in bioremediation: mycoremediation for soil valorization

The LIFE MySOIL project develops an innovative technology to demonstrate the feasibility of mycoremediation in the remediation of industrial soils contaminated with organic compounds such as petroleum derivatives.

Mycoremediation is a bioremediation process that uses fungi to degrade or accumulate contaminants. It offers the same benefits as bioremediation treatments, but with fewer disadvantages than traditional remediation strategies, allowing high levels of contaminant removal to be achieved. Soil contamination is one of the main environmental problems in Europe, affecting the health of soil ecosystems in terms of complexity, toxicity and difficulty to treat.

There are approximately 2.8 million potentially contaminated sites in Europe, of which 650,000 require cleanup, but only 15% of them have been addressed so far.

Environmental objectives:

• INDUSTRIAL SOIL CLEANUP: Remove all petroleum-derived organic contaminants from contaminated industrial soils to achieve the objectives necessary for soil reuse.
• MYCOREDIATION: Promote and demonstrate mycoremediation as a key bioremediation technology.
• ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: To reduce the environmental impact of mycoremediation processes compared to conventional technologies.
• CIRCULAR ECONOMY: Promote the principle of circular economy by reclaiming soil instead of storing it in landfills and using agro-industrial by-products and urban green waste.

Every year, KEPLER, as a partner of the LIFE MySOIL project, participates in different calls for proposals to develop new lines of research through its R&D&I Department. This aims to produce innovative, quality and sustainable products and services for its customers.